What A Pain In The Past
by radixVIRO
Summary: Basically there's a lot of ish going on; Hilary's dad is sick, Kai's crazy in love, Hilary's oblivious as hell and there's a rival out to fight for her. KaixHilary. Not that great with summaries.
1. Intro: Riff

Hey all! So I've been inspired and decided to write an actual chapter-filled story. Woo-hoo for me! I know there have been a few stories that involve singing and seeing someone familiar in the most random place... But here's the catch, they've never been continued. I plan on finishing this at least within the year. Yeah, it may not be the best but it's something, right? I promise it will get better and better the more it goes on ^^

Summary: Hilary is a headstrong, confident girl that can take on anything and anyone. Minus her past. She goes to her favourite bands final show with Tyson only to find that her past is catching up with her. Most importantly, what will Kai think of all this?

Pairing: KaixHilary. There will be some interference, of course.

This is just the intro to the story so it may be a little boring. I apologize.

On with the fic!

Hilary happily skipped down the streets of Bakuten humming to herself. There's nothing she loves more than the perfect day; the sun was shining, the streets were full of life, and, just to make today even better, it was Saturday. She had finished all her errands which ranged from taking her puppy for a walk to doing her grocery shopping. Her parents are on vacation for the next month so she has to fend for herself. Not that she minded, she loved the thought of being alone; no annoying little brother, no nagging mom, and best of all, no busy-body dad. She almost shivered at the thought of her father trying to give her "the talk" again. He never handled the fact that she was always with the Blade Breakers very well. He detested the thought of her talking to a bunch of "dumb boys".

As her thoughts trailed on, Hilary didn't seem to notice the crowd of people surrounding her. Still aimlessly walking through the crowd, she stopped suddenly when she heard someone shout out her name. Hilary slowly turned around to find Tyson running in her direction waving his arms in the air with, of course, a big dopy grin on his face.

"Hey Hil, are you here to watch the show, too?"

She stared at Tyson with confusion, not knowing what he was talking about. She looked up above the crowd toward the tallest building on the street and saw "Nocturnal Pulse" plastered across the entire structure.

"Wow!" she started, "I never knew they would come to Bakuten! I thought they were just an underground band and stuck to their downtown shows. This is awesome, oh my gosh!"

With a smirk and a wink, Tyson continued, "I know right! Would you like to join me in this wonderful event, m'lady?" He extended his hand toward her and bowed his head down.

"Tyson, you're an idiot." Hilary poked his head and pushed her way past the crowd to get as close to the group as she possibly could. Tyson tagged along behind her, still smiling, and trying to get through all the people piling into the streets. He stared at the back of the girl walking in front of him. He always loved her, as a sister, of course, and he would do anything for her. He loved to see her and make her happy because she deserved it. The girl was tough; you could say she had balls. His thoughts were cut short as his best friend turned to him with a bright smile.

"Come on, Tyson! Pick up the pace, we need to get a good spot!"

The two ended up perfectly centred in front of the stage. 'This is so sick!' Hilary thought, 'I can't believe I'm here right now... I might get to touch Shane's hand EEP!' Her thoughts went on and on like the typical fan she was until she heard some girls gossiping behind her.

"I heard this is their last show," the tall brunette said.

"That's not what I heard," continued the short, pudgy blonde, "Apparently Shane is getting kicked out of the group. They recruited some next kid from Italy."

"WHAT?" Hilary shouted, not realizing she was thinking out loud. She frantically turned to Tyson grabbing onto the sleeves of his shirt shaking the life out of him. "What's going on? Tyson...Please...Say it ain't so!"

Tyson stared down at Hilary as she shook him, "Hi-Hilary, calm down! It's been the biggest news for a good month now. Shane is leaving the band for another group so the band had to find a new lead."

"No. No, no, no, no, no, no." Hilary shouted, denying the hard truth. This can't be her reality. The love of her life... her hero... her motivation... leaving the group she had listened to since she was 13? No way, that can't be right.

As her thoughts overwhelmed her, a huge mist began to form from the bottom of the stage and worked its way up to the top. The middle of the stage parted and a platform rose above the base with a set of drums, a guitar, bass and a microphone. The crowd started cheering and screaming as the musicians emerged from behind the platform and took their places by their instruments.

"Hello everybody!" the lead singer, Shane, started, "It's great to be here!" The crowd got even louder than before; it was almost ear-piercing. Hilary started jumping up and down at the sound of his voice clinging to Tyson's arm, "Oh my god! It's him, Tyson! It's really him!"

The rest of the group set up and began to play their part of the song one at a time. After 30 seconds, Shane did a little cough, smirked and began to sing. Hilary felt like she was in heaven. She was having such a fun time with Tyson; singing along, throwing her hands in the air and enjoying the vibe from everyone else on the street.

As the group finished their final song, everything slowed down. All that was heard was the bass being played and a light drum beat. Shane walked toward the front of the stage where Hilary was, "How is everyone?" he started and the crowd went wild, "We have an announcement for you all!" Everyone settled down to listen to him.

"As you've all probably heard, I will be leaving Nocturnal Pulse to join my new group, False Pretense," a flow of boo's and negative shouts were heard from the ground. They were obviously all disappointed, but he continued, "Now everyone, I know you were all looking forward to our new album releasing this fall, and it will still be hitting stores! I will be singing on the one side of the album, but there will be a new voice on the flip side. We found him while on tour in Italy and, thanks to this young talent, Nocturnal Pulse didn't have to retire. This is his first appearance on stage with the group, so I would like you all to give a warm welcome to our new kid, Hajime!"

The crowd silenced for a few seconds as this "new kid" walked on to the stage. He looked between the ages of 18-19. He had jet black hair, hazel eyes, and stood at approximately six feet. He wore a dark red t-shirt with a leather jacket on top, dark blue jeans and a pair of black skater shoes (AN: I couldn't think of anything else to describe them... don't judge). As if on cue, all the girls in the crowd screamed and squealed with happiness at the sight of this boy. Clearly, he was already a hit. He grabbed the microphone, a little shaken up by the amount of people standing before him and began,

"Hey everyone, I'm Hajime and I'm excited to be performing for you all as soon as the tour begins." He ended in a small, shy smile and the girls went crazy. The guys liked him too, but certainly not to the extent that all the females went to. As Hajime stepped down from the mic, he looked straight into the crowd and saw Hilary staring up at him in awe. He gave her a little wink and continued walking off stage with the rest of his new team.

Hilary stood below the stage bewildered. Was this déjà vu or just a cruel joke?

'No way.'

FIN!

Alright, so there's a special meaning as to why I chose the name Hajime. In Japanese, it means "beginning" so I saw it fitting since he was carrying on for Shane. Yes, Shane is pretty North American sounding but whatever, didn't feel like being creative for his one chapter he'll be appearing in. Anyways! Yes, so hopefully you all liked it ^^


	2. You're Not Alone

Alright so I finally figured out how to edit the story once it's been uploaded! *crowd cheers* Thank you, thank you. I'm counting on some more reviews as the story progresses, so I'll do my best to keep it interesting :)

I realize that one of the 'groups' I used in the first chapter is from a song by TRJA, wasn't feeling all that creative to make up my own. No h8 plz!

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or its characters.

* * *

><p>Chapter Two:<p>

The crowd began to diminish as the stage was closed up and being packed away. Everyone happily walked away talking about how amazing the show was. The girls, in particular, especially loved the end where Hajime stepped out.

'Hajime...' Hilary thought to herself as she walked back to the dojo with Tyson. 'It can't possibly be the same snot-nosed freak from elementary school. Nope, that's a negative. No way. No how. No when. Nothing.' She concluded her inner monologue as they were greeted by Grandpa at the dojo's front gates.

"Hey home dogs!" Grandpa began, "Where y'all been? I been missin' my homegirl, how ya been?"

"Gramps cut it out," Tyson whined, "We just got back from the most bad ass show downtown! It was so cool there were lights and smoke and lots of people and-" he was cut short when he saw Grandpa and Hilary heading into the dojo. He sweat-dropped and followed them inside.

Stepping into the dojo, Hilary removed her shoes and placed her bags with them in the entrance. She walked in to find Daichi passed out on the floor. 'What the hell is with this kid?' she laughed to herself.

"Hey Hilary!" she looked over to find Max and Ray playing COD (AN: I had to, just... I had to.) and Kenny typing away on his computer. She walked over to the couch and sat with the video game addicts.

"What have you guys been up to? And umm... what's with Daichi?" she turned to where the sleeping monkey was on the floor and sighed.

"Well you see," Max started, "He couldn't find any snacks in the cupboard an- BAM! HEADSHOT!"

She sweat-dropped as she looked at the screen to see Ray's player down on the ground. The two boys began bickering back and forth.

"-And he said if there was nothing for him to eat within the next ten minutes, he would drop dead." Kenny finished.

"I'm guessing the ten minutes passed up?" Hilary asked.

"You got it!" smiled Kenny, "He's been laying there for about half an hour."

'What would I do without them?' Hilary smiled to herself as she looked around the room at her friends; she loved these guys. They were there with her through everything and never gave up on her. They were like her stepping stones; every one of them served some importance and helped her keep going forward when she wanted to give up.

"What are you idiots doing?"

All heads turned to the door to find their stoic captain leaning against the door frame, observing everything they were occupied with. Hilary could tell he just woke up; his two-toned hair was shuffled, his speech was almost slurred, and his violet eyes were sleepy. She couldn't help but think how… cute he looked. He looked so vulnerable, so young; like a child. She wanted to run over and hug him to death. She shook her head to forget her running thoughts.

"G-good morning, Kai," she greeted him with a faint blush. She had always respected Kai the most; there was just something about him that made her want to always be near him. There wasn't anything in the world that she didn't like about him.

"Morning," and with that, Kai spun on his heel and headed over to the dining room searching for the nearest couch. He had had a long day and was exhausted. Training had become even more intense ever since he graduated from high school. He had nothing else to do, so why not work out and tone the bod?

Hilary sat there watching his retreating back, smiling to herself. Of course, this didn't go unnoticed by the neko-jin. Ray went over to where Hilary was and gave a sly smirk.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?" she asked him theatrically.

"Nah, you just have that amorous look plastered all over your face."

Hilary blushed a light pink, folding her hands in her lap looking down, "I-I do not! Why would I look any different than I always do?"

"Hilary, I'm not stupid. And quit your stuttering, it's making things even more obvious." He winked at her and walked off to the kitchen to make a snack.

Poor, poor Hilary. Sitting there in all her embarrassment; the more she thought about Kai, the deeper her blush got. Trying to hide her face with her hair, she stood up and headed towards the door.

"Sorry guys, I have to get back home to see my dog (AN: His name shall be… Pochie), he probably misses me and he's all alone. See ya." She put on her shoes and picked up her bags. Before she could get out the door, Grandpa stopped her,

"Hold up homegirl, you can't go out on your own at a time like this. There's been reports of some mysterious home dog walking the streets and harassing lil' ladies like you," he turned to his grandson, "Why don't you walk her home?"

Tyson, dramatically, started whining and saying that on the walk back from the show he tripped and broke both of his legs. Everyone sweat-dropped at his sad attempt to get out of it.

"It's fine grandpa, don't worry about me. I can take care of myself. Besides, my house is just a few blocks away," Hilary smiled trying to assure him that she was a big girl and could do things on her own.

"I'll bring her," a voice erupted from the other room. Kai walked out with his hand ruffling his hair and looking down at her, "It would be nice to get away from this house of idiots."

"Perfect!" Grandpa smiled, "Alright, adios kiddos!"

Hilary just can't get a break. 'It's like they're purposely doing this to me!' Her head dropped and she heard a giggle coming from the kitchen. She turned her head to find Ray peeking his head out from the door frame giggling and making kissy-faces at her. She glared at him and looked up at Kai as he spoke to her.

"You ready?" he asked in a cool tone, grabbing the bags out of her hands.

"K-Kai, you don't have to do that, you just woke up. Really, it's fine, you're doing enough as is," she stammered.

"Hn, come on." He opened the door and walked out in front of her, motioning for her to come along.

"Wait for me!" Hilary yelled out to him. She turned to everyone in the house watching her at the door, "Bye guys!"

They all stared at the door as she shut it and heard her footsteps running off into the night.

"She totally likes him, "Max smiled, turning to Kenny.

"I don't know Maxie… Maybe she just looks up to him" Tyson concluded to himself.

Max looked over at him with a blank look, "Yeahno."

She finally caught up with Kai, which was quite difficult considering it was windy as hell and her legs were definitely not as long as his were. The trees on the boulevards were swaying in the wind and it was silent. Not many house lights were on and neither were the ones on the street so it was almost pitch black. Kai wasn't one to make conversation, but he wasn't a man of many words. He usually, well, always, kept to himself and didn't bother talking to people unless necessary. He couldn't deny, though, that he liked her company. Hilary was the only girl he would open up to. She wasn't like those fan-girls that would go into cardiac arrest just from him looking at them. Hilary was real; there was nothing fake about her. And to him, she was perfect. He had a special place in his life for her, and in his heart. Though he would never admit it to everyone, or even himself, he would do simple things to show his affection. Walking her home, for instance, was one of his ways. He had never been in a relationship before since he had no use for anyone, but he was forming one with his Hilary.

Kai shook his head, 'My Hilary? Get a grip.'

Hilary's big ruby eyes looked up at Kai shaking his head, "Is everything alright?"

Kai closed his eyes for a second and re-opened them staring straight ahead.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's pretty cold."

Hilary looked down feeling bad for making Kai walk with her in such bad weather. 'I didn't even ask for him to come along, it's his own fault!'

"If you didn't want to be outside, you didn't have to come. I'm quite capable of caring for myself, thanks."

Kai smirked at this; of course Hilary had the balls to give him attitude. When she had something to say, she damn well said it no matter how it came out of her mouth.

"If you didn't want me here, you could have just said so."

Hilary shot a look up at him, "No, no, that's not it! I just didn't think you liked walking in the cold."

Kai half smiled, "Hilary, I lived in Russia for over half my life. A little chill is no big deal."

She smiled up at him, and then she remembered,

"Oh, let me take those," as she reached out for her bags. He pulled his hands away from her. "Kai please, you don't need to."

"But I want to," she stuck out her tongue at him and folded her arms.

They neared her house and she saw Pochie's head in the window. Hilary smiled and reached for her keys, unlocking the door and stepping in. She motioned for Kai to follow her inside, and he did. Who would have thought Kai was so obedient?

Pochie went running to the door as he heard his mommy's voice calling for him. He jumped up to her wagging his tail like crazy. "Aww there's my baby! Hi cutie pie, do you have to go outside? Come on, let's go outside!" She was just so happy and excited to see her little pup, she missed him; she was almost convinced he was her baby.

The dog noticed Kai and, not thinking it was possible, he wagged his tail even faster and jumped up on him. To Hilary's surprise, Kai bent down and started petting Pochie. He was so gentle and was smiling at him, it was really sweet.

"Wow Kai, never knew you were an animal kind of person. And Pochie isn't even a people person; whenever he meets someone knew, he goes crazy barking and bearing his teeth."

"I guess I'm just a wonderful kind of guy," Kai said, jokingly.

'That you are,' Hilary thought and smiled to herself. She grabbed Pochie's leash to take him outside to do his business and told Kai he can make himself at home if he'd like. When she came back in, Kai had emptied all her bags and put everything away for her. She looked into the hall andsaw Kai looking at her family photos. She could tell he was confused and there was a lot on his mind. She walked over to where he was standing.

"What is it?" she asked him.

It took a few seconds before he replied, "Who is this man with you?" Pointing to a picture of Hilary, who looked about 7, and a young man, about 20, with shaggy light brown hair and deep ruby eyes, much like Hilary's. When she didn't respond, he looked down at her staring sadly and blankly into space.

"He was my best friend. My older brother, Gorou," she said softly.

'Was…' Kai thought to himself. He wanted to ask her what she meant by it, but didn't know if it was appropriate at this point. He stayed quiet and let her continue by her own will.

"He passed away 8 years ago," she began with such sadness in her voice. "It was my 10th birthday and he was at the store getting me a late present; he always did that kind of thing. He was working late that night, though, and was trying to make it back home for dinner to see me. He was on the highway and a transport truck lost control and totalled hi-" her voice cut out and tears began to form in her eyes. She took a breath and continued,

"It completely destroyed his entire car. He was trapped inside and the engine caught on fire. They couldn't get him out; they tried everything, but he was jammed inside," she paused and touched over her heart,

"He managed to get his arm out of the section the fire fighters ripped apart on the car and he gave them a box. He told them to tell his little sister that he's sorry he didn't make it in time for the party and that he would make up for it."

She reached into the top of her shirt and pulled out a gorgeous necklace shaped like a heart. It was made of diamonds on one side of an arch, and gold on the opposite side, completing the heart. She held it in her palm smiling to herself, and then looked up at Kai. He could read every thought going through her head, as well as her heart. Out of instinct, he reached out and pulled her into a hug. She held on tightly to his shirt, clenching it into her fragile fists. He could feel her trembling in his arms, and pulled her as close as he possibly could.

He could hear her softly crying; this wasn't right. How is this fair? Of all people, the most gentle, pure girl he had ever met lost her best friend; her brother. He could only imagine how torn apart she had been. She was so young, so naïve.

Kai looked down at the girls in his arms, feeling for her. He wasn't sure how to react to this, he didn't know what he could possibly say to make all the sadness and pain leave her. He wanted to see her smile again and tell him how stupid and ignorant she thought he was.

"I'm sorry," he quietly said to her, "I had no idea."

"I never told anyone this," she started to reply between cries, "I didn't want to make a big deal about it. Everyone would have treated me different; I just wanted to be me. I didn't need anyone's pity."

Kai, instead of feeling sad for her, he felt anger, "Hilary, are you stupid?" he pulled her away from him,

"What is wrong with you? You're not one for pride, you needed to tell people. How the hell do you think I can understand you if you don't tell me shit?"

Hilary looked up at him giving him a blank stare, not knowing what to say. She hugged herself and looked down,

"I-I'm sorry, Kai. I di-," she was cut short when he smacked himself in the forehead.

"Don't apologize, I shouldn't have said anything. Just… Nevermind. Come sit down, I'll get you a drink."

Kai put his arm around Hilary's waist protectively and walked her into her living room. He sat her down on the couch and walked into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and was surprised to find it practically empty. The fridge consisted of a near-empty jug of orange juice, something that looked like leftovers wrapped in tinfoil, and a carton of eggs.

'What the hell?' Kai thought to himself, 'What is this? Is she starving herself?'

He grabbed a glass out of the cupboard and walked over to the water-dispenser (AN: no idea what it's actually called) and filled the glass. He walked over to Hilary to find her fiddling with the heart necklace she had. He sighed to himself and brought it over to her.

"Here, drink it," he demanded. She looked up at him with the same sad eyes and took the glass in both hands. She held it in her lap and looked down at it.

"Your fridge is empty," he started, "Your bags only had stuff for your dog in them. Why wasn't there anything for yourself?"

Hilary looked back up at Kai, "He's more important right now. I'll be fine without anything for a few days, don't worry about it." She smiled at him, but he wasn't stupid. He knew it was put on so he wouldn't think anything of it.

"Where are your parents?"

"They won't be home for a while, I've been on my own for a bit now. I don't have a job or anything so it's hard to supply myself with what I really need."

"Hilary…" Kai looked down at the girl in front of him, not registering anything that was going on. This girl was clearly torturing herself on the inside. She made everything believe everything was alright with her fake smiles and acting out every laugh. She was hurting inside, torn apart from what happened 8 years ago.

"I'm staying here tonight."

Hilary's eyes opened wide with surprise, "W-what? Why? Don't you have to be home, or go back to see the guys?"

Kai smirked, 'Idiot, just think of yourself.' "I'm not leaving you alone, Hilary. You can't function properly; you're on your own, no food, and you have Pochie to take care of. I'll sleep on the couch so don't get all freaked out."

Hilary couldn't help but smile at him. This time it wasn't fake, it was a genuine, happy smile. She was happy she had Kai; he was always looking out for her, just like her brother had done.

"Thank you."

'She's finally sleeping,' Kai thought to himself. It was four in the morning and Hilary was sleeping soundly with Pochie cuddled up next to her. Every so often Kai would go up to Hilary's room to peek in and make sure she was doing alright. Every time he went up, he would see her lying in bed staring up at the ceiling; sometimes whimpering. He didn't like this side of Hilary. He didn't like knowing she was so hurt. He didn't like that there was nothing he could do but look over her and protect her. He had promised himself that night he would always take care of her more carefully from then on; nothing in the world will ever hurt Hilary again. Anything that harms her will have to deal with him as a consequence.

He walked back downstairs and went into the kitchen. He opened the cupboards to find them bare. He sighed to himself as he ventured over to the table. He sat down and looked at the papers sitting around.

'What's this?' He picked it up, reading it. 'It's a letter.' He read the papers more intently, they turned out to be

'Poetry? Since when did Hilary become a Shakespeare?' The words were beautiful, delicately flowing together piece by piece, writing out her feelings. One particular part pulled at his heart strings, which was really something considering most people don't believe he has a heart.

_Story books full of fairy tales_  
><em>Of kings and queens and the bluest skies<em>  
><em>My heart is torn just in knowing<em>  
><em>You'll someday see the truth from lies<em>  
><em>Knowing clouds will rage<em>  
><em>And storms will race in<em>  
><em>But you will be safe in my arms<em>  
><em>Rains will pour down<em>  
><em>Waves will crash all around<em>  
><em>But you will be safe in my arms<em>

Kai sat there smiling to himself, reading over the words she had blessed the paper with. There was a lot more to this girl than met the eye. She was special, unique, and extraordinary in his eyes. He would go to hell and back if it made her happy. He wasn't one to understand his true feelings or anything, but he knew one thing for sure; he loved Hilary. His thoughts were cut short when he heard a scream coming from upstairs.

"Hilary!" Kai jumped to his feet and basically flew up the stairs. He ran into her room and slammed the door open. He ran in to see Hilary sitting upright in her bed with her head in her hands bawling her eyes out. He rushed over and sat beside her,

"Hilary, what's wrong? What happened?" He pulled her into a protective hug as she shivered.

"I-I… I-" She was stumbling over her words, so Kai took guesses for her.

"Was it a bad dream?" He felt her nod her head against his chest, "What happened?"

"I saw him *hic* trapped in the car. I tried reaching out to him but I couldn't get to him and then… then-" Hilary cried even harder into Kai's chest.

"It's okay, Hilary, please don't cry. I'll protect you."

Hilary looked up at the man holding her in his arms with teary eyes. He was so warm, so welcoming.

"You're not alone."

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><p>End of Chapter 2.<p>

YEE finally done! I forgot what I was going to say after this chapter… So I'll just address where the lyrics came from.

In My Arms – Plumb

That is all. I'll be updating soon!

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	3. Tyrant and a Lunatic

I noticed that my stories are a little crammed together; I apologize for that! I just don't like when there's huge gaps in my work… I'll work on it though, promise! So the last chapter contained a bit of OOC from Kai but that's alright, he's gotta show some emotion once in a while, right? Right.

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade or any of its characters.

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><p>Chapter 3:<p>

The sun shone in from the white curtains in Hilary's room, stirring her in her sleep. She groggily opened up her sore, tired eyes and looked up at where the light was beaming in from. She put her arm across her forehead and rolled over to her side, closing her eyes. When her eyes opened up again, they met an ivory toned face. Her eyes shot open and she shuffled over to the other side of the bed, feeling her face heating up more by the second.

'Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh! What is Kai doing in my bed?' the more she thought, the brighter her face went. She turned back to face Kai and noticed that he was on top of the sheets. She smiled; she was happy that he had some respect for her privacy and didn't climb right in with her. She looked closely at his facial features and took in the real beauty of this man. Yes, he was a man, not a boy. He had the perfectly shaped face, soft, smooth skin. His nose was perfectly shaped in every way; his eyebrows were perfect, his eyes, even shut, were beautiful… 'And his lips…' Hilary leaned in a little closer to get a better look at him. His lips were slightly apart as he slept, she leaned a little closer and felt his breath on her nose. She closed her eyes and smiled; this was the perfect moment. She leaned in just a bit closer to his face and brought herself up higher on her pillow so they were eye-to-eye. She rested her forehead against his, while closing her eyes, and went back to sleep with a small smile.

The second time she woke up, she was by herself. After a big stretch, she got up and looked around on the top floor. 'Where did he go?' She went downstairs and checked every room. Still nothing. 'What the hell… where's my dog?' Getting worried, Hilary ran outside, still in her jammies (AN: Yes, jammies) and yelled up and down the street for Pochie. She went back inside to get her phone so she could call Kai when she saw a note already written in her phone:

_Hilary,_

_Pochie and I went for a walk. We'll be back later. Don't leave the house until I'm there._

_Kai._

It's official: she was going to kill this boy. He drove her to the point of insanity. 'How dare he! He has the audacity to take control of my house, touch my phone, AND steal my dog!' Then she remembered last night. Kai was there comforting her when she was breaking down. He was hugging her, protecting her, there with her. 'I'm really not alone, am I, brother?' she looked at the picture in the hallway smiling, and then stared up at the ceiling. Her mind began to wander and she was becoming overwhelmed with sadness once more.

"Alright, snap out of it! It's time to take charge, Hilary!" she tended to motivate herself quite a lot; it kept her from thinking, which was really good for her. Leaving her thoughts aside, she went back upstairs to get ready for her day. She hopped in the shower, brushed her teeth, blow-dried her hair, and got dressed for her day. Today's outfit consisted of blue shorts, a white t-shirt with a pink sweater on top and some white flats (AN: I'm clearly not a fashion designer). She happily hopped back down the stairs and went into the kitchen to get started on some breakfast. As she went to open her cupboard, she heard the front door open. She curiously poked her head around the corner and saw a little tail wagging. She slowly crept up behind her little pup and jumped out at Pochie, petting him and cooing, "Hi baby! Hello my little Pochie, did you miss mommy? Mommy missed you so much!"

"Well someone's happy today," Kai said as he walked into the kitchen with some bags, "Did you sleep well?"

Hilary was about to respond with a simple 'yes I did, thank you' but nope. There was no way her mind would let her forget this morning.

'Our faces were so close… I could feel his breath on mine.' Her cheeks began to heat up; she shook her head and smiled over at where he was, "Y-Yes! I slept great, thank you."

Kai was preoccupied emptying out his mystery bags in the kitchen. He replied, without turning around, "Happy to hear that."

Hilary walked back into the kitchen still petting Pochie as she walked and looked at Kai questioningly. 'What's he doing?' She peered over to see that he was putting groceries in her cupboard.

'WHAT?' She couldn't believe it; what was THE phoenix prince doing putting food in HER cupboards? 'The nerve!'

"Kai, I can very well take care of myself, you know!" She stood there trying to look intimidating with her hands on her hips.

Kai simply turned his head over to her, not caring about what she had to say.

"Shut up," he said nonchalantly, turning back to his business. He couldn't help himself, he had to do something to take care of her. She clearly had no idea what she was doing, so it was up to him to do it for her. He turned back around to find Hilary huffing and puffing and mumbling to herself about how stupid he was. Not that he cared, but he found it amusing.

"Kai, listen. Please don't do this kind of stuff for me; I won't be able to pay you back. I could eventually make it up to you after I save up and everything bu-"

"I woke up early and there was nothing for me to eat. I decided to go get a few things so you can survive at least another week."

"But…" at this point, there was really no sense in arguing with him. He had a good point; there was nothing for him to eat, so he had to go get it for himself. Hilary felt awful. Kai had spent his time worrying for her and she didn't even have any food for the poor guy to eat when he woke up. She looked up at Kai apologetically, feeling guilty and embarrassed for being so dependable,

"I'm sorry. I promise I'll have something better for you to eat next time you visit."

"Who said I was leaving?" Hilary's eye literally twitched when Kai said this.

"Uh, what? Who gave you permission to stay here?"

Kai gave her his infamous smirk, "Well, you see, you're obviously incompetent and can't fend for yourself. Besides, Pochie seems to have taken a liking to me; how could I leave him high and dry here in this morbid house with you?"

"You're such a-ugh!" She balled her hands into fists and stomped her foot. She hated to admit it, but Kai did have a legitimate point. She was pretty useless when it came to housekeeping, even when her parents were around. 'My parents…' Realization hit her; what would her parents say if they knew Kai was staying in the house with her? No, what if they found out he was sleeping on her bed? Her head began to spin with the thought of her father dangling Kai out the window by his fingertips. 'It's even scarier because that's what father's reaction would most likely be.' Even though her parents would give her a hard time about it, imagine what the boys would say. 'They would probably think we're dating or… Or just hooking up!' She gasped and her face turned a brilliant red, her eyes opening wide. She covered her face with her hands and shook her head fiercely trying to rid her thoughts. 'No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no~"

Kai stood there looking over at Hilary with a blank stare. 'She's officially insane.' With that, he left her with her thoughts and walked into the living room, followed by Pochie, and sat on the couch. The room was quite simple, but elegant all the same. The walls were a soft beige colour with numerous blue designs on the walls. Kai figured that they were professionally drawn on the wall, seen as they didn't look like 'old-lady peach flowers'. The couch he was on was a light blue that matched the markings on the wall. There was a desk in the corner with a laptop resting on it, as well as a picture frame.

"Hey, Hilary," Kai started, looking over to his Hilary. 'Now I've taken ownership of this poor girl. Heh, I like the sound of it though'. Hilary looked over, still lightly blushing, and walked over to Kai motioning for him to continue.

"Tell me about your family. What are your parents' names? What are they like? Do they both work?"

'Well this is new,' Hilary thought to herself. Kai wasn't one to ask so many personal questions; he usually just figured everything out on his own. Hilary had thought she was the type of person that was as easy to read as an open book; she never even thought that Kai, or anyone, could only see the front cover and a few chapters. It was kind of nice not having Kai know everything about her. She felt like she had some sort of hold on him because of this.

"Well, my mother's name is Akahana and she's 38 years old. She works for a computer company building software and fixing technical problems," she looked at Kai as he nodded for her to continue.

"My father's name is Fumito and he is 40 years old. He used to work as a music producer before my brothers passed. Now he works as a history professor and travels to different countries to teach of our culture. It's nice, I truly admire my father; he wants people to understand the different viewpoints of separate nations."

Kai seemed interested in this; he never knew anything about Hilary's life. He didn't used to think knowing all this was important, but now, it's what he can't get enough of. Either that, or just simply hearing her voice.

"I also have a younger brother," Hilary continued, "His name is Takumi and he's 7 years old. He's a real pain in the ass; always acting like a big shot trying to impress everyone. I guess he has high expectations thought because Gorou was considered a genius in the family." She trailed off and switched back on topic,

"How about you, Kai? Tell me about your parents; what are they like, do you have any siblings?"

Kai looked down at the ground and scowled as he remembered his past, "My mother and father were murdered by my grandfather when I was very young so I don't remember much of them. I don't even remember their names, but I can picture their faces. My mother had a soft face, fair skin, light blue hair and grey eyes. My father had a more frightening look to him; he had navy hair and crimson eyes. That's about all I can remember."

Hilary looked at Kai and couldn't believe what she just heard. She had known he didn't have the best memories of his home life because the boys tried explaining how he turned to Black Dranzer a few years ago. Shocked and feeling awful for asking, she softly apologized to Kai for asking such a question. Kai turned to look at her,

"It's fine, you didn't know. We're even now." She couldn't help but smile at him; no matter what the situation was, he always made her smile. Now it was time for her to return the favour.

"Hey Kai, ever heard of the group Nocturnal Pulse?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, I really wanna go to their next show and I think it's going to be next week some time. So I was wondering, if you aren't busy…" Kai cut Hilary off before she could end her sentence,

"No," he said, sitting back crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't like them; never have and never will. Especially with that new guy they just added to the sausage fest."

Hilary chuckled at what Kai had said. 'A sausage fest, really? You couldn't have possibly been more creative with that one?'

"But," Kai continued, "Since you want me to go, I guess I can tag along."

Hilary was so happy, she forgot what she was doing and she tackle-hugged Kai, causing him to topple over on the couch.

"Thank you so much, Kai! It's going to be so much fun!"

The slightest bit of blush crept onto Kai's cheeks as he laid on the couch with Hilary on top of him hugging him. She had her face buried into the nape of his neck hugging him so tight; the touch of her breath causing shivers to go down his spine.

"Hi-Hilary, get off me" Kai stammered, clearly flustered but trying to maintain his cool exterior. Hilary, still on top of him, lifted herself up with her arms looking down at him smiling a big, toothy grin. Her eyes were filled with happiness and joy; there was nothing more he wanted to see from her. 'She's so beautiful… Gah, no! No she is not. She's just Hilary. My sweet, caring, loving, outstanding- NO!' Kai pushed Hilary right off him so that she was on her side of the couch and he claimed his own.

"Ahem," Kai started, hiding his embarrassment, "Do we need to buy tickets beforehand, or do we just show up?"

"I don't think it really matters. Since there's a new guy and all, I'm sure they'll be doing a tester-show before the actual tour starts to make sure he's good enough and liked by all the fans. The girls sure love him, though."

"He's a dud." What was this? Was the all-mighty Kai… Jealous? Just thinking of Hilary taking interest in that stupid guy got the fire burning in Kai's stomach.

"Kai don't be so mean! He's actually really cu-" her sentence was cut short as she felt the aura around Kai become murderous. She had to think of a way out of this one. Fast.

"Er… he's really cultured! Yes, that's right, he's from Italy so he's probably familiar with different customs than our own. Heh" she finished, nervously laughing with her hand behind her head. 'Sheesh, he gets so moody. Must be his time of the month already.' Giggling to herself, Hilary stood up and went to see Pochie sitting by the coat rack.

"Hey Kai, wanna go and see what the guys are up to? They're probably slacking with their training right now," she was always a wiz at getting herself out of sticky situations; even deadly ones.

"Hn."

She mentally sighed to herself, 'Guess Kai's back to normal. Oh well!' Hilary put on her shoes and grabbed her keys as Kai casually got himself up and followed her out the door. The weather was starting to get chilly again since September was slowly coming to an end. The leaves on the trees were beginning to change into brilliant colours of red, orange and yellow, and people were starting to decorate their houses for the change in season. This was Hilary's favourite time of the year; Fall. She can remember her and Gorou as kids playing in the leaves and carving pumpkins together. He would pick her up and toss her into the piles that they had raked up together and he would dive in after her. Hilary quietly smiled to herself as she and Kai walked down the street on their journey to Tyson's dojo. There was always something reminding her of Gorou whether it is a picture of him or something as simple as a leaf blowing in the wind.

"There's a crowd up ahead, do you want to detour?" She looked up at Kai with soft eyes and he looked back down at her, "It's up to you."

"We can go through them, I don't mind it. Unless you don't want to get mobbed with all those crazy fan-girls," she said smiling at him. She knew how much he hated them. No, detested the fan-girls; they were everywhere he went, it was near impossible to go outside without being swarmed by those pests.

As they neared the crowd of screaming girls, Hilary tried to see what all the commotion was about. Unfortunately for her she was only 5 feet tall (AN: Like me, woohoo!) so she couldn't see over the thick swarm. She looked up at Kai with her puppy eyes,

"Kaaiiiii~," she whined, "I can't see over the people~. Please tell me what's going on?"

Sighing to himself, Kai grabbed her hand and dragged her over to where everyone was standing. As if on cue, all the girls turned to Kai and swooned over him.

"Oh my goodness Kai, you're so cute!"

"Why are you with Hilary?"

"Marry me, Kai!"

"I WANT YOUR BABIES!"

Good Lord these girls were crazy. Having to see them was scary enough, let alone having to listen what was going on in their messed up heads. Glaring over at Hilary, she could tell exactly what he was thinking: "I'm going to kill you." She smiled to herself and waved over at Kai being smothered by all the girls.

"Well hello there pretty lady."

Hilary turned to see who was trying to start up a conversation with her and her jaw dropped. 'Hajime…' The young boy stood there with a sly look on his face smiling at Hilary. She couldn't believe her eyes, she hadn't seen him in over 10 years and now he was standing right in front of her.

"Am I not worthy of a greeting, Hilary?" he gave her a toothy grin and extended his hand out to hers, "It's nice to see you again," he finished as he lifted up her hand and kissed it.

Hilary couldn't seem to find her voice; she was at a loss for words. She had so much to say but couldn't piece her sentences together.

"Uh… Hi," Hilary sweat-dropped, was that really the best she could do at a time like this? The boy in front of her laughed and pulled her into a tight embrace,

"I really missed you, Hilary. It's been too long, how have you been?" he questioned her in a soft, delicate voice.

'What's with him… he's so different than he used to be. He was never the nice one.'

Hilary was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't realize Kai broke free from the life-threatening fan-girls. He stood close beside her and glared daggers into the boy standing in front of him. The look in his expression clearly illustrated that he wanted to tear the kid to shreds and leave nothing behind but dust.

"Oh, you have a boyfriend now, Hilary?" Hajime asked, still smiling.

"NO! No, Kai isn't my boyfriend, he's one of my friends. He's a member of the Blade Breakers; the captain, to be exact. We were just heading over to our friends house," Hilary's face flushed pink and she played around with her fingers, suddenly finding her voice. She looked down at her index fingers pointing them together nervously, not daring to look at Hajime, or even Kai for that matter.

"Well hello, Kai. It's a pleasure to meet you," Hajime smiled and extended his hand out to Kai, only to be rejected. Kai didn't like this kid one bit; he blankly looked at him without a care in the world. He didn't want to talk to this kid, he didn't want to get to know this kid, and he certainly didn't want anything to do with this kid. Kai grabbed onto one of Hilary's fidgeting hands and attempted to drag her back on course in the direction of Tyson's dojo.

She turned back to Hajime, "If you want you can join us. I'm sure the guys would love to meet a member of NP." She innocently smiled at the boy awaiting his reply.

Kai inwardly cursed Hilary for being so kind to people, it's one thing he didn't like about her. He didn't like that all her attention was being focused on this 'loser'.

Hajime received the uneasy feeling Kai was sending off toward him and he shook his head declining her offer.

"It's alright, Hilary. Maybe another time," he smiled and looked at Kai, "I wouldn't want to make anyone jealous by being there."

Kai snarled at the boy and was ready to lunge at him. The rage was building up in his body and he was ready to burst.

"We're going," Kai looked down at Hilary who looked up at him puzzled.

"Bu-"

"NOW." He pulled on Hilary's hand so she would follow behind him to their destination. Hilary turned her head back at Hajime amidst being dragged off. He had yelled something to them, but she couldn't make it out.

Hajime stood on the street with his hand waiting in the air to be retrieved from waving them off. He lowered his head and smiled to himself,

"Wait for me, Hilary."

* * *

><p>"K-Kai please! Stop! Kai you're hurting my hand! Kai come on you walk so fast please slow dow-"<p>

"Shut up!" Kai snapped at Hilary. He finally slowed his pace down and he turned to see her walking with her head facing the ground. He didn't mean to yell or be mean. He was just pissed. Livid, even. He hated the way that guy looked at Hilary; the way he touched her hand, how he looked into her eyes as if he knew how special she really was. Kai clenched his teeth as his mind wandered off thinking all of this. He really needed to control his anger.

As they arrived at the dojo Kai released Hilary's hand and walked ahead of her without looking back. He hated himself for emotionally hurting her, especially after he had promised he would protect her and make her happy.

For once, Tyson was the first one at the door when Kai walked in. He had a creepy smile on his face, clearly trying to be smooth with something. Kai ignored him until Tyson opened his big mouth,

"So Kai, you never came back last night," he gave a cheeky smile and put an arm around Kai's shoulders, "Perhaps it's because you stayed at Hilary's house? What did you guys do?" Tyson began raising his eyebrows up and down like the pervert he is. Kai calmly took Tyson's arm off of his shoulder and twisted it behind his back throwing him to the ground.

"Don't be an idiot all your life. It's disgusting." With that Kai walked off into the yard to see what Daichi, Max, and Kenny were up to.

Tyson laid on the floor in pain with his big butt in the air sulking about how much of a bully Kai is. That is, until Hilary walked through the doors. Tyson appeared to have had a miraculous recovery and bounced back to his feet and put his other arm around Hilary's shoulders.

"So Hilary, Kai never came back last night. Did you trap him in your room or something?" and once again the eyebrows starting their wave. Hilary looked at Tyson with sad eyes, but that quickly changed. As soon as he finished his eyebrow dance, she grabbed his arm and flipped him over.

"You're such an idiot!" she yelled as she walked into the kitchen where Ray was, "When are you ever gonna grow up, you filthy swine!"

Tyson was laying on his back surrendering, and again, sulking to himself.

"Why do they always yell at me, I just asked a simple question. Kai's a total tyrant and Hilary's a lunatic."

He rolled over and saw glimpses of each of his friends; Kai in the yard and Hilary sitting on a chair, 'The tyrant and a lunatic. Not bad.'


	4. My Hero, Minori

I'm trying to get through these chapters as quickly as possible 'cause all the ideas I have for this story are fresh and fantastic in my mind. Hopefully I have more readers than I do Reviews /cries in corner/

Note: Hajime's appearance is somewhat hard to imagine, so I tried to find the perfect look that I was trying to have for him. If you look at Train from the anime Black Cat, that's basically what he looks like (except with the features I explained in chapter one).

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Asides from my imagination… that is mine.

* * *

><p>Chapter 4:<p>

Hilary sighed to herself as she sat at the kitchen table watching Ray prepare everyone's lunch. Kai being so harsh seemed to have damaged her; she knew it wasn't all that big of a deal because he was always a sourpuss, but this time was different. She spent almost 24 whole hours with him and everything was perfect. His sudden change in attitude was somewhat frightening for her; he was so gentle with her, and then he was almost neglecting her.

"Hey Hilary, what's going on? You and Kai are acting a little strange today," came Ray from the other side of the kitchen stirring something in a pot, "I mean, he's never usually happy, but he also never walks off without you."

"I'm not too sure, really. We were perfectly fine all last night, but when we were walking over here he put up his front and wasn't acting the same. He was being rude and not paying attention to me when I tried talking to him. He was good until we met up with-" Hilary stopped herself and got caught up in her thoughts; 'Hajime… Kai wasn't happy to see him at all, he didn't even introduce himself.'

Hilary continued, "He didn't like Hajime. We met with him on our way here and he was raging; he didn't say hi or say anything at all."

"Hajime?" Ray put a finger on his chin, deep in thought. "Oh! That new kid I've been seeing all over tv. What, is Kai mad that all his fans are being taken away?" he chuckled to himself.

"I really doubt that, Ray. We saw a bunch of fan-girls all over Hajime, but as soon as they saw Kai they basically attacked him. I was talking to him and out of nowhere Kai came over and dragged me off."

"Oh-ho-hooo~ I think Kai's jealous," Ray winked at Hilary.

"Uh, jealous about what?" Hilary looked at Ray with a confused expression plastered on her face. There was nothing for Kai to be jealous about… at least, that's what she thought.

At that, the boys came back inside from their training and joined Hilary at the table. All, but Kai; he looked over at her, and quickly looked away while walking over to the living room couch. He didn't really understand why he was acting this way, either. It's not like he has any real reason to be so rude to Hilary, she didn't do anything wrong. He was pissed off about that Hajime guy.

'Hajime,' Kai growled to himself as he was laying on the couch; he hated that named, loathed it. 'That bastard, thinking he can just touch her like that. Talking to her so casually and pulling her away from me.' Kai stopped at that thought and laid there in silence. Frustrated, he huffed and rolled over on his side.

* * *

><p>Hilary went out for a walk near the back of the dojo. She had a lot on her mind, and her old memories were creeping up on her. It was strange how everything just pieced together; she concluded that it all began since she saw Hajime for the first time in so many years. Since that day, she cried over her brother for the first time since she was 9, and it was in front of someone nonetheless. She had opened up to Kai, which she never thought would have happened in a million and ten years. But now, to make it all worse, Hajime's face made her think of a certain someone a little too much. She hadn't seen this person since they moved away with their mom.<p>

As she walked through the garden (AN: Grandpa officially has a flower garden with all those fancy shmancy bushes and paths and stuff) along the stone path, her memories began to flood her mind. Thinking back, she remembered her school life in her old neighbourhood; she was the only girl on the street, so she was the biggest tomboy. She still wore dresses and pretty pink clothes, but she was tough. She remembered running up and down the streets playing man-hunt with her friends, as well as cops and robbers. She was so lost in her memories, she could vividly see herself there once again; pink dress on and her soccer cleats. She wasn't the most fashionable but it was who she was; she was never someone that could be categorized and labelled. If anything, she was labelled as 'Hilary'.

She pictured herself running by the lake with the twins next door. They would bring their remote control cars and she would have a kite flying in the sky; she spent almost every day with those boys. They were identical twins, but she could easily tell them apart. They looked just like their mother; they had jet-black hair and beautiful green eyes that sometimes turned into a light brown depending on the light.

Hilary found large rock by a miniature waterfall no taller than a foot and sat down. She put her hands behind her on the rock and leaned back as she reminisced on her past.

'That's when it all began,' she thought to herself as she remembered another memory of the lake. Her and the twins were playing tag by the water on a bright, sunny afternoon. Their game was cut short when Hilary noticed a duck floating by in the lake.

"It's so tute (cute)!" she said in her cute little voice as she walked closer to the water.

"Hilawy you need to be careful," said the smaller, more fragile one of the twins as he reached out for her to stop,

"Let her do what she wants," said the other, pushing his brother's hand away, "She's too stupid to listen."

Hilary wasn't all that fond of the more outspoken and rude brother. He was always picking on her, whether it is about her clothes or the way she talked. He always teased her, poked fun, took her toys away and argued with her over everything.

She smiled to herself as she remembered the boys, 'It was always something with them.'

As her memories continued, the small Hilary made her way closer and closer to the water where the duck was. The one twin was almost having an anxiety attack and the other just watched with a grin on his face. It was like he knew this would happen and was waiting to laugh at her about it. As she neared the duck, she dropped to her knees and reached her hand out to touch it. It frightened the duck, so it swam further away from Hilary. Annoyed, she balanced herself on her knees and one hand as she reached out even further to touch it and- SPLASH! She fell into the lake.

The twins stood there staring at the water; one laughing hysterically and one panicking. Thirty seconds had passed and Hilary still hadn't surfaced from the water. At that point, they both were in a panic; what were they supposed to do? Was she kidding around? Did she get the duck? The smaller twin gasped as he came to his realization,

"Hilawy can't swim! She told me last time we played tag here and I had to hold her hand when she reached in to get her kite!"

"WHAT?" the obnoxious twin cried out. He ran over to where she had fallen in but couldn't see her anywhere. His green eyes scanned the entire lake, but there was still no sight of Hilary. His adrenaline kicked in and his little legs moved as fast as they could as he ran up the side of the lake. The clouds had started to roll in and it looked like it was going to start raining. The water's current became stronger and then he heard her,

"Please! Help me!" Hilary was crying for help as she tried to keep her head above the water. The only swimming lessons she had taken were with Gorou when he was teaching her how to hold her breath; and thank the Lord above that he did. The current pulled her under and she held her breath for as long as she could, flailing her little arms trying to pull herself up. She resurfaced and saw him running alongside the water after her.

"Hilary, hang on!" he yelled out to her as he ran down even faster. As he got farther ahead of her, he noticed there were massive rocks piled in the water right where Hilary was headed. He ran over and jumped on top of one and lowered himself as far as he could so he could grab onto her when she flowed by.

Rain drops began to fall from the sky as she got closer to where he was waiting for her. He reached down as the water drifted her right under where he was and he grabbed onto her hand.

"Hilary, I got you!" he yelled, "Don't stop kicking your legs! Please!"

She struggled to look up at him as she bobbed in the water trying to keep her head above it. He called over for his brother to help him lift her out. They two boys used all their strength to pull her up out of the water and onto land. The three kids laid on the ground panting heavily with their eyes closed; the twins were both on their backs on either side of Hilary, who was lying on her stomach.

She used her arms to try and pull herself up but she had no strength left; she used up all she had trying to fight going under. She dropped back to the ground breathing heavier than she was a few seconds ago and started dangerously shivering. The rain had started to pour down on the kids; this was definitely not good. The twin that ran after he looked over at her shaking and yelled over to his brother,

"Let's take her home. Mom can take care of her."

The two boys got to their feet and helped Hilary stand as they all walked back to their house. The three of them walked as fast as they could under the falling rain and back to their home. When they got there, their mother walked out prepared to scold them for being out in this weather until she saw them carrying in a very limp, weak Hilary.

"Oh my goodness, what happened?" she asked as she frantically ran over to scoop up the little girl in her arms. She brought her into the living room and asked her sons to find her something to change into and put her wet clothes in the dryer. After changing her, their mother wrapped a warm blanket around Hilary and let her lay on the couch to rest.

"Minori," their mother called to Hilary's courageous hero, "Go make her some hot chocolate. There should still be some left in the cupboard."  
>"But moomm~," he whined, "Why can't Hammy do it? I always have to do everyth-"<p>

"GO MAKE IT NOW!" his mother yelled out to her ill-mannered son. He was such a hassle sometimes.

She held the little shaking girl in her arms to keep her warm and started humming a soft melody to her. It was so peaceful and soothing, and certainly very opposite of the trauma Hilary had just faced. She eventually fell asleep, and their mother laid her down to sleep. She stood up and walked into the dining room and saw her other little boy sitting at the table with his face in his hands. She heard soft cries coming from her son and she sat down beside him, resting her hand on his back.

"Honey, tell mommy what's wrong?" she asked him in a soft, caring voice.

"I-" he started, "It's all my fault! I didn't stop her from seeing the ducky, mom! I forgot she couldn't swim and it was too late when I told Minny (AN: aka Minori)!" he threw himself into his mother's loving arms as he cried to himself, taking the blame for what had happened to Hilary.

The woman patted her sons head affectionately as she rocked him in her arms,

"Shh, it's alright. It isn't your fault; you protected Hilary as best you could. She'll be okay."

Minori walked out of the kitchen with Hilary's hot chocolate and a plate full of cookies. He, as well as his brother, felt guilty for what happened to her. He didn't do anything to prevent things from happened the way they did. He sadly looked down at the floor past the drink and cookies. He shook his head trying to keep his bad thoughts away from him and looked over at the sleeping girl. She adjusted the way her body was laying and gave a faint yawn, opening her eyes. He continued walking over to Hilary and set her snacks down on the small table in front of the couch which was separating it from the t.v.

"Here, I brought you something to make you feel better," he said, looking down at his friend. He sat down in front of her, just on the edge of the couch and kept his head down.

"I'm so sorry Hilary," he sniffled, "I should have told you not to when Hammy said you couldn't swim. I'm such a bad friend." His eyes began to water as he finished his sentence, leaning his head on Hilary's chest. He closed his eyes to fight back his tears; there's no way he was going to let her see him cry.

Instead of agreeing and using his weak state as an advantage, Hilary softly placed her hand on his head and began playing with his hair.

"Don't cry Minny. I'm just stupid sometimes."

He opened his teary eyes to find her looking at him… smiling? Why was she smiling; she had just been through hell, but she was the one trying to make him feel better. He couldn't help but return the smile to her; she was always so happy, no matter what it was. Even when his father died, it was Hilary there beside him smiling and telling him everything was going to be alright. She was a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel. As young as he was, he knew that he wanted to always stay by her side. He knew that she could always make him happy, and he wanted to do the same for her. He looked into his friends eyes; yeah, she was pretty stupid, he couldn't deny that. But his brother was even more of an idiot for not pushing him to go save her sooner,

"Yeah, well, Hajime isn't any smarter."

* * *

><p>Hilary snapped out of her thoughts as the wind around her picked up. She watched the leaves dance in the wind and smiled at the flower petals fall off and join the dance. She pulled her blowing hair behind her ear and looked up at the sky; it was starting to rain. She got up from her spot and ran back to the dojo, using her sweater as a shield from the rain.<p>

Breathing slightly heavy, she entered the dojo removing her shoes and hanging up her sweater to dry. She walked down the main hall and into the bathroom where she could find a towel and shake out her soaked hair. When she turned the corner to get to her destination, she accidently bumped into something and almost lost her balance.

Frustrated, she held up her fist and pointed accusingly at what she had just bumped,

"Idiot! Watch where you're goi-" she stopped and stared at the person in front of her. There stood a tall, young man with jet black hair and hazel eyes. 'This has got to be a dream,' she thought, trying to convince herself that this wasn't really happening. The boy in front of her looked just as surprised as she did, but his expression quickly changed into a big smile as he realized who it was.

"Still feisty as ever, I see," he started while grinning sheepishly at her.

Once again, he rendered her speechless. What the hell was he doing at Tyson's? Did they somehow know each other or something? As if reading her mind, Maxie walked out from the hall to find them looking at each other.

"Well that's a little awkward," Max laughed as he saw Hilary staring up at the boy in front of her clearly beyond confused, "We were out in the front going over some new strategies and it started raining. When we were heading back inside, Daichi saw him walking in the streets staring blankly in front of him and thought he was a lost crackhead or something-"

'Typical Daichi,' Hilary sweat-dropped. Only he would come up with something like that.

"He got so worked up and convinced something was wrong that before we knew it, he was dragging this poor guy behind him yelling 'we'll save you, don't worry addict!' or something," Max finished with a smile while rubbing the back of his head.

"Well now that I'm here, why don't we pick up from where we left off earlier today?" Hajime asked looking into Hilary's eyes,

"I mean, it's been a while since I last saw my Hilly."

He began to lean in closer to her as he continued to smile. Her eyes blinked nervously as she was trying to register what was going on. 'What the…'

"She doesn't belong to you, and her name is Hilary." Out came Kai from the living room glaring at the scene in front of him. He looked over to see Max's retreating back holding a candy bag happily skipping off. He looked back over to Hilary and Haj- ugh, he couldn't bring himself to say the name, let along think it.

"I'm well aware of what her name is, thanks." Hajime sternly said as he returned Kai's death glare. The two stood in silence looking murderously at one another as poor little Hilary stood there helplessly between them. She didn't even want to know what either one of them was thinking; no way, no how, nuh uh!

"Umm," she began nervously, and before she could get the words out of her mouth she felt an arm slither around her waist. She looked up to see Hajime slowly pulling her into a hug, very well knowing that Kai's rage was boiling up inside. Kai's expression turned into one not even capable of being put into words and Hajime continued to slyly smile at him, then turned to Hilary.

"We have history, don't we, Hilly?" He leaned in closer to her once more and nibbled on her ear. It sent a shiver down her spine and she felt her face heating up. She was quickly brought out of her flustered state when she heard a deep growl escape Kai's throat; that was never a good sign. Now taking in the situation, she pushed Hajime away from her with a hard shove,

"Quit toying around with me! I don't belong to anyone, and yeah we did but our history ended as soon as you up and left!" she yelled with her face still flushed.

"And YOU," she turned to Kai, "You have no right to say anything after how mean you were!"

She folded her arms across her chest and, with a huff, headed towards the living room where all the others were.

Both Kai and Hajime watched her walk off and were both thinking the same thing; 'I have to go after her.'

As Hajime attempted to advance his way into the living room after Hilary, Kai stopped him in his tracks.

"I don't care who you think you are, but back off."

Hajime turned around with one hand in his pocket, closed his eyes and replied,

"My, my, such tough words for someone who was really at fault."

"Go back to where ever you came from, you're not welcome here."

"Ah, but you're wrong," Hajime slightly turned and opened his eyes to look at Kai with askance, "Your friends forced me here against my own will. And besides, if she didn't want me here she would have told me to go home."

"You speak as if you have a death wish." Kai retorted, half smirking.

"Not necessarily, I just know what I want. There's no way I'm letting you have her." And with that he turned fully and followed after Hilary's steps.

Kai stood there staring at where the bastard was once standing and balled his hands into fists. He didn't realize how mad he was until his nails punctured his hands and blood trickled down from how tightly he was squeezing his fists. He swiftly turned around and walked upstairs (AN: The dojo officially has a second floor. It's where all the spare bedrooms are for when all the Blade Breakers and their friends stay over; each have their own room.) to his room and kicked the door shut behind him. With as much force as he could muster into one fist, he punched a massive hole in the wall. Bits of chipped wood fell from the hole and off Kai's fist as he brought his hand back to him.

'If only that was his face.'

* * *

><p>"Woah, did you feel that?" Tyson looked around as he heard a loud noise coming from upstairs, "What do you think that was?"<p>

Nobody else seemed to have noticed it so they brushed Tyson's worries off and turned their focus back to their guest. Therefore leading Tyson so go and sulk to himself in the middle of the living room floor.

"Anyways," Ray started, "Sorry about earlier with Daichi. The kid has an active imagination and goes a little too far sometimes."

"Not a problem. It's better than a bunch of crazy girls dragging me into their dungeon or something," Hajime laughed, as well as everyone else in the room. Then Kenny chipped in,

"So what brings you to Bakuten?"

"Well, you see, I'm actually preparing to go on tour with my new band and Bakuten happened to be our first stop for introducing me to the group."

Tyson shuffled himself back across the room over to where Hajime was to hear what was being said.

"Wow, that's awesome! How are you liking it?" Daichi asked a little embarrassed from what he accused Hajime of being.

"Asides from being mistaken for a junky, it's pretty good! I got to meet a lot of new people and see new faces. Even some old ones," he said as he winked at Hilary. She didn't know how to take what he said; he was either implying that she wasn't a new face to him, or that she was old.

Tyson threw his hands in the air and jumped to his feet, "YOU'RE THAT NEW GUY FROM NOCTURNAL! DUDE YOU'RE AWESOME!" he said with twinkles in his eyes.

Everyone gasped as Tyson exposed who Hajime really was, minus Hilary and Ray. Ray already knew that he was in town when Hilary and Kai came back, and Hilary just didn't give two shits. The only thing going through her mind was, 'Who gives a damn? He's just as famous as the Blade Breakers, there's nothing special about him.'

"Can I have your autograph?" Max asked as he frantically looked around for a marker and piece of paper that the rockstar could sign. He found a marker but, alas, he was paper-less. He reached over and grabbed Dizzy out of Kenny's hands and held it out to Hajime,

"Here, sign!" Hajime laughed at the scene in front of him; Kenny was devastated and trying to get Dizzy back as Max was pushing Kenny away with his foot, still holding it out to Hajime.

"You guys are insane," he laughed as he signed the top of Dizzy and turned to Hilary still smiling, "Are they always like this?"

She didn't bother to look up and acknowledge him, but still answered, "Yeah, they act like a family."

"It's nice having brothers like this," Ray said as he joined the conversation, "We all have our own families and come from all across the world, but this is what a true family is."

"It must be nice," Hajime replied, deep in thought, "I haven't really had a family for the past 6 years."

The commotion stopped and everyone looked over at Hajime sitting on the couch smiling sadly to himself. This time, however, Hilary looked over to him. 'What about his mother? And his brother, they've always been inseparable.' She really started to think about it, and it was weird the twins weren't together.

"What happened to Minori?" Everyone in the room turned in Hilary's direction as she asked this. What was she talking about?

"Who's Minori?" Daichi obnoxiously asked.

"He's my brother. My twin, to be more exact."

"Woah sick so it's like double the fame and fortunate!" Daichi received a fist to the forehead from Hilary clearly meaning 'shut the hell up you insensitive monkey.'

"You would think so, but I haven't seen him for a long time," Hajime continued, looking at Hilary as he answered her question,

"Three years after the accident he just took off. I have no idea where he went, but he vanished."

Hilary looked into his eyes and saw the hurt, pain, and even betrayal he was feeling. She felt every emotion that he was experiencing at that moment, and it pained her too. It hurt to see her friend so depressed and torn apart; she could empathize with him. She knew exactly what it was like to lose someone so precious to you. Minori and Hajime were always together, they were literally each other's halves,

'But now they're split in two' she sadly thought to herself.

"Was it just you and your brother?" Kenny asked with his voice full of concern.

"Yeah, it was just after we moved to Italy that my mother got really sick. She had developed a brain tumour and was slowing being torn apart; starting with her memories. She eventually forgot who my brother and I were. Whenever we came home from school, she would think we were robbers breaking in or murderers."

Hilary couldn't believe what she was hearing. That same, warm-hearted loving woman that cared for Hilary as if she was her own daughter was…gone? That can't be possible. She was fine and healthy when Hilary last saw her at Gorou's funeral. Last that she remembers, his mother was hugging her and telling her everything was going to be alright. She was consoling her parents and offered to care for Hilary if ever necessary. How could this have happened to sure a pure woman?

"Anyways, enough of this sad stuff!" Hajime said with a smile, "Tell me a bit about yourselves, I don't even know any of your names."

"I'm Daichi and I'm the most bad ass person you'll ever meet!" Daichi said full of confidence while pointing to himself.

"I'm Kenny, but you can call me Chief."

"My names Max, feel free to call me Master Chief," Max laughed with a wink.

"Well you probably already know my name. I mean, who doesn't?" Tyson said with a sly smile, eyes closed and his arms folded across his chest.

"Not a clue," Hajime innocently replied, trying to apologize to the now sulking Tyson.

"He's Tyson, the world champion beyblader. And I'm Ray, nice to meet you."

Hajime glanced over at Hilary and smiled at her, "I already know who you are beautiful. But what about that other guy?" he shifted his attention to the rest of the guys in the room, "You know, the one upstairs? I don't think he likes me all that much…"

"Oh, that's Kai, he doesn't really like anyone," Tyson said laughing and giving a big, goofy grin, "You're lucky he even noticed you were here!"

"Yeah I guess, oh well. I'm sure we can become great friends."

"Hey, Hajime," Hilary started, looking down clearly deep in her thoughts, "Minori… Was it his guilt? I mean, no, never mind. It's nothing." She awkwardly smiled at the boy in front of her as she got up to leave the room.

They all watched Hilary walk off and Tyson turned to Hajime,

"Hey man, how do you know Hilary?"

"We grew up together," he replied, still watching her leave the room, "We were always together, the three of us; Hilary, my brother, and myself. Even for class projects we would fight so the three of us could be partners because we didn't like anyone else. She was the only one we could really open up to and allow into our lives. Nobody else understood us; they couldn't even tell us apart." He smiled,

"She was always so happy and positive about life. She cared for my brother and I like we were all a family. We pretty much were all a family until the accident." Hajime began to trail off not wanting to talk about Hilary's business. It wasn't up to him to tell these strangers about Hilary's life, it wasn't any of their concern.

"You guys mentioned an accident a few times, what exactly happened?" questioned Ray.

"It isn't really up to me to tell you, but you all seem to be the closest people to her," Hajime began to tell them what happened to Hilary's brother and how her entire life changed. She was never the same girl; she would still laugh and smile and play around with them, but she wasn't her. Her smiles were all put on and whenever she was alone hiding for tag or something, she was found crying, holding her knees.

"Gorou had been someone we all admired, even my mother respected him," he said sadly, "Hilary was never the same girl we all loved. My brother and I didn't know what to do. We wanted to be there for her but she kept pushing us away saying that everything was fine and she didn't care."

On the opposite side of the wall stood Hilary as Hajime told his story. She sunk down to the floor hugging her knees to her chest and held her head down on them as he continued,

"Out of the two of us, Minori had taken it the worst. He's always blamed himself for the death of Hilary's brother; it was because of him that Gorou was late for her birthday party because Minori wanted him to pick up the perfect present for her. My brother had been telling Gorou all about this necklace he saw when we went to the store with our mother. He went on about it for weeks but he couldn't afford it. Gorou offered to get it for Minori to give to her because he already had a surprise of his own. He was going to bring her to a concert to see her favourite band, Nocturnal Pulse."

Hilary's eyes opened as Hajime explained this all to her friends. Why hadn't he told her all of this? She put the necklace in her hands; it wasn't from her brother after all. It was one of her best friends, her elementary school crush.

"Minori blamed himself for everything after the accident; he hated himself for hurting her. He promised he would take care of her and protect her but he felt as if he failed her. He truly loved Hilary, more than just as a sister. I think that's why he left when he was thirteen… he had nothing to live for," Hajime looked down at his hands folded in his lap, "I didn't know what I could have done. He thought he had lost Hilary and then our mother passed."

Kai was on his way walking back downstairs when he heard everyone talking. As he reached the bottom step, he was stopped in his tracks when he saw a small figured huddled up to themselves. He made his way over to where she was and knelt down beside her, placing his hand on her head.

Hilary jumped with surprise from the unexpected contact. Kai's expression saddened when he saw her tear filled eyes. Why was she sitting here all by herself crying?

"Hilary, what's going on?" he asked, gently caressing her cheek with his hand.

She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. Opening her eyes back up she answered,

"Everyone is gone," she started. Kai was confused; what the hell was she talking about? They're all still in the house, nobody has left yet. Voices coming from the next room caught his attention and he heard the name 'Gorou'.

'Ah,' he thought to himself. He listened closer and heard Hajime talking about someone named Minori and how he blamed himself for hurting Hilary.

"I don't believe it," Hilary said softly, trying to stand herself up, "The three most important people in my childhood life are gone forever. I couldn't stop it… I couldn't save them." And the tears silently started to fall from her eyes. Kai slowly stood up and looked down at the heart broken girl. Everything was happening so suddenly. Something was always making Hilary cry.

'That bastard,' Kai growled to himself. It was his fault that Hilary felt like this and was crying by herself. He had no damn right to talk about Hilary's life or her brothers. Kai strode into the living room right over to Hajime and picked the kid up by his collar.

The boys all gasped at what Kai was doing,

"Kai what the hell are you doing?" Tyson yelled, getting mad at his friend for doing this to someone so hurt from the past.

Ignoring Tyson, Kai glared down at the boy and spoke with his teeth clenched,

"Keep your fucking mouth shut. What happens in her life is none of your business." He dropped Hajime to the ground and stomped off to Hilary, who was now clearly visible in the doorway. The boys looked in her direction and saw her tear-stained face. She didn't make eye contact with any of them; how could she face them after crying her eyes out over just hearing a story? She felt stupid, and didn't know how to react to this feeling. Her sadness turned to anger as she focused her eyes on Hajime.

Kai put his hand on Hilary's shoulder, but she didn't accept it. She pushed his hand away and glared at him,

"None of you guys have any right talking about me. You just don't understand." And with that, she ran off into the rain.

"Hilary, please!" Hajime yelled after her as he got up to follow her. He was stopped by Kai as he reached the door,

"Let me go."

Kai stared blankly at the boy in front of him, refusing to let him pass. He didn't have any reason to run after her; it was his fault she felt this way.

"You're the one that doesn't understand her," Hajime said in a threatening tone as he knocked Kai's arm away, "Stop acting like you're her hero. Nothing but a fake."

Hajime ran out the door going after his heartbroken friend,

"Hilary!"

Kai stood watching the door he was once denying the boy to go through. Maybe he didn't really understand her after all, he didn't know how to make the pain she had inside diminish. He didn't know why his legs weren't the ones moving to follow after her. He had sworn to protect her, but now someone else was running after Hilary.

'Hilary…'

* * *

><p>END CHAPTER!<p>

Wooh, that was a doozy lol. Alright so I want to apologize for the unnecessary, over-dramatic moments of Hilary. I initially had a different idea for it but for some reason, my fingers typed different words than the ones I had planned for.

So there was a lot of explaining of the pas, but hey, it was a must. The title IS "What A Pain In The Past", right? Right. In the next chapter I'll dumb it down so there isn't any confusion with what is going on right now with all these memories, incidents and current … things happening.

Hopefully this was enjoyed! :)

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	5. Blue Lavender

Aw yeah, just flying through the chapters. The story will pick up pace starting in this chapter. Expect jealousy, fights, and ager fits. Obviously there's going to be some sappy snappy stuff going on, and a lot of unnecessary actions by the characters. You're gonna notice there's a lot of running around in this chapter lol I'm hoping it will end up being longer than the other chapters so about 8000 words minimum). Ejoy :) Ps: I'm going to start actually looking over what I write, lol. I have a bad habit of just submitting whatever I have without editing it or re-reading anything.

Oh, and I received a request to write a 'drabble' but I have no idea what that means… I'll get to work on it as soon as I figure out what it is, promise!

There was also some confusion about Hilary not having enough food. Her parents are very well off, but Hilary.. eh, not so much. She was left in charge of everything and had to provide herself with the necessities she needs. She didn't have all that much money (considering she doesn't have a job) and her stock was running low.

Hopefully that cleared things up a bit!

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

* * *

><p>Chapter 5:<p>

The rain was pouring down even harder. You could hear it hit the cement like a ton of bricks. After Hilary left the house, Hajime had been searching everywhere in town for her. He checked every store, park, and even some backyards. He couldn't find her anywhere.

'Where the hell could she have gone?' He ended up at the intersection where he had first seen her during the concert a few days ago. He looked down every alley he came across, but still nothing. He glanced up at the sky as the rain came down and heard the crack of thunder. 'Shit, this is no good.' (AN: Does thunder even crack…)

He continued running down the empty streets, soaking wet, scanning the entire area of every place he ran by. His wet hair was clinging to his face and the wind kept blowing it into his eyes. He didn't want her to be alone when the thunderstorm began, she had never liked thunder. When they were little and playing board games inside his house during a storm, she would snuggle up close to whichever one of the twins was closer when she heard thunder. It was the one thing she was terrified of and, in her current state, things wouldn't go over well if she didn't have anyone with her.

Lightning struck down and lit up the skies. Hajime abruptly stopped to look at the phenomena. He didn't know what to do. She was out somewhere in the city all by herself and he was determined to find her one way or another. He began walking at a quick pace shifting his head back and forth looking for Hilary. He reached the end of the sidewalk and it became a small dirt path. He followed it up into a forest full of dusky trees and the sound of animals scurrying around trying to hide from the storm. He kept walking down the ragged path a few more minutes and emerged into a beautiful garden. It was full of flowers, bushes, weeping willow trees and a black iron fence surrounded the garden. Without hesitation, he began to walk faster down the path that eventually ended up being stone and stopped next to a large rock. He slouched down to catch his breath, 'Where is she?' he thought to himself, 'Jeez, she was never this good when we were kids.'

His head shot up to the sky as he heard the thunder roar and watched the sky light up once more. He jumped to his feet and frantically looked around the garden. He looked straight ahead and saw a large weeping willow tree with a small, brown bench under it. What was strange about it was that there was a shoe poking out from under the bench.

'Hilary?' Hajime ran over to the spot and knelt down beside the bench and, not being all that surprised, he found Hilary sitting under it with her knees to her chest and her hands covering her ears. He saw her trembling as the thunder came to life once more. She began to whimper and put her head between her knees.

"Hilary," he whispered, trying not to frighten her with his sudden appearance.

She looked up at him with her tear-filled eyes, "Haji-" the lightning struck again and she jumped into his arms, clinging on to him for protection.

"M-make it go away."

He pulled her into a tight hug and ran his fingers through her hair trying to calm her down,

"Shh, it's alright Hilary, you're safe now. Nothing can hurt you." He sat on the cold, wet grass holding Hilary in his arms, soothing her from her fears. He wanted nothing more than to see her smile; he loved her best when she was happy and showing off her beautiful smile. 'Love, huh…' he thought to himself, contemplating on the word. Did he love Hilary? He couldn't still have feelings for her after all these years. Too much has happened between that time. Sure he had a big crush on Hilary when they were younger, but she belonged to Minori at that time. There was no way he could go against his brothers feelings.

'But he left us, and with that, he left her.'

The thunder boomed once more and he felt Hilary tighten her grip around him. He remembered when he and Minori had saved her from the lake when they were younger and brought her home to their mother. He remembered her humming Hilary to sleep when she was shaken and mortified from almost drowning. He rested his cheek on the top of her head and began humming the same tune his mother had done to comfort her. He felt her grip on his shirt loosen and the trembling had slowed down. He slightly rocked her in his arms as he hummed to her, making her feel relaxed. And hopefully safe.

The storm had calmed down a bit and the wind was lightly blowing the leaves on the tree they were under. He shielded her from the wind with his body and wrapped his jacket around her small figure. She had fallen asleep leaning into his soft, warm body. He held her in his arms with his cheek still on top of her head listening to her now calm breaths. When she inhaled, she would sometimes shiver and choke on her previous tears. He was happy where he was with her; both physically and emotionally. He knew that she still cared for him, how could she not? They didn't ever do anything without each other. The only problem was that he couldn't shake off the feeling that he was betraying his brother as he sat there with her. He wasn't the one that promised to protect and take care of her, that was Minori. Not that he didn't want to be there for her when he needed to be, it just wasn't his promise.

* * *

><p>Hilary woke up with a shiver. She didn't realize that she had fallen asleep in the middle of the garden. She yawned and snuggled up closer to her pillow and… Wait, what? A pillow in the garden? She opened her eyes to find herself in someone's arms. She smiled to herself and nuzzled in closer under his chin. She heard his breathing above her and giggled to herself; she was happy again. This was the second time he had comforted her in her time of need, and to make it better, he didn't judge her or yell about how stupid the reason may have been.<p>

"I'm happy you came after me, it means a lot Kai," she said as she cuddled in closer to his chest.

"Kai?" Woah, woah, woah. That didn't sound right. Kai's voice was deep and, as she paid closer attention, he smelled more like lavender, not this cinnamon scent. Hilary opened her eyes and looked up to see whose arms she was in.

"Hajime?" she shrieked and jumped away from him hugging herself, "W-what are you doing?"

"I'm sorry you're disappointed I wasn't someone else. I was worried so I came running after you," he was obviously hurt by her reaction.

"I didn't mean it like that, Hajime! Honest, I was just surprised he wasn't the one that followed me out."

"Yeah well I'm happy you appreciate the fact that I ran all around the city in the pouring rain just to find you." Ooh, sarcasm.

"I don't get what's so great about that… that dickhead."

Hilary glared at Hajime, taking in what he had said. She frowned at him; she took offence to what he said. Who did he think he was insulting Kai like that?

"You know nothing about him. Don't judge Kai."

Hajime folded his arms across his chest and chuckled, "You're really protecting him? Was he the one that came running after you while you cried? Do you even think he gave a rat's ass?" he balled his hands into fists by his sides and looked down at the ground,

"He tried to stop me from chasing you! Is that really someone you want around you?"

"You're lying. You probably just pushed Kai out of the way so you can prove to be a hero. Well guess what, you're not. And you're wrong about Kai. He really does care, he even told me!" She couldn't believe that he was trying to lie about Kai caring for her. Well, that's what she hoped was the case…

"Oh really? What exactly did he say?"

Hilary felt a small blush reaching her cheeks as she remembered the night that Kai had spent at her house. He told her he was there for her and was never going to hurt her. He wanted to protect her; he was her true hero.

"He said I'm not alone," she smiled, and looked up at her friend, "And I really believe him. I know that I can trust Kai, and I can open up to him."

Hajime sat there rolling his eyes, 'She can't be serious about this. He serves no purpose in her life.'

"You can believe whatever you want Hilary. Just know he's no good for someone like you."

With that he stood up and grabbed his jacket from Hilary. He flung it over his right shoulder, and waving her off, he made his way back to the dojo.

'Idiot, he can't even compare to Kai,' Hilary thought to herself as she sat in the damp grass. Her hair was wet and clinging to her face,

'Well this is wonderful' she sarcastically thought to herself. She just wanted to go home, she had enough for one day. Her legs began to feel itchy from sitting in the grass, which was one feeling she didn't need to experience any longer. She held onto the bench to assist her in standing up, spun on her heel and walked back home.

'I need as much time away from him as possible.'

* * *

><p>Back at the dojo, Kai was sitting on the floor in his room thinking of what had happened. He didn't understand why she got so mad at him. All he did was stand up for her. 'I don't get that girl. I swear she's bipolar.' He opened his eyes as he heard someone walking into the room. 'Thank God it's Ray and not that weasel.' Weasel aka: Hajime.<p>

"Hey Kai, you doing okay bud?" Ray was Kai's best friend; he knew whenever he was absolutely rattled. He could tell exactly why Kai hated this new kid, even if Kai hadn't really realized it himself.

"You know, your feelings for Hilary are embarrassing."

Kai shot a glare up at Ray; his violet eyes expressed everything he was thinking. Ray couldn't help but laugh to himself,

"It's embarrassing because it's so obvious. Why didn't you go after her?"

That was a pretty good question, why didn't he go after her? He knew that he should have been the one to find her and hold her in his arms, but he hesitated. He had no idea why he stopped himself from going to Hilary.

"She was running from her past. She always has been. There was nothing I could do to stop her from feeling the way she did."

"That's the biggest pile of shit I've ever heard come out of your mouth, Hiwatari. You're probably just afraid."

Kai? THE Kai Hiwatari? AFRAID? Pfft, that's impossible. Kai was a cold, hard-shelled man that was intimidated by no one. His eyebrow twitched and was about to burst when Ray added,

"You're afraid to show how you feel, Kai. Especially now that someone else has stepped into the picture. You've never been good with competition."

Bravo Ray, you hit the nail on the head. Kai closed his eyes and thought about it; maybe he was right. Kai was always a possessive person and he always annihilated his competition. But how could he be afraid of letting his feelings for Hilary take over? He had always had a strong connection with her and he deemed her his life. Yes, that's right, Kai Hiwatari now had a reason for living. The only thing he ever had some sort of concern for was Dranzer. He never had any other real motivation, and he never had anyone to love or be loved by. As his thoughts raged on, he began to feel his heart dropping lower and lower as he thought about how Hilary must have felt. He didn't feel like he could chase her, though. She had someone that knew the real her, someone that grew up with her and knew everything she was afraid of. The bastard knew all her favourite things and all Kai knew was that her hair was brown. Kai only heard about what happened to her in her past, meanwhile the other one was able to live it with her and be there for her.

"She trusts you, Kai. Don't let her down."

Kai was left alone again letting his thoughts get the best of him. So what if Hajime was in town, he was just a child in Hilary's life and she doesn't seem too fond of him. That's right; Kai's the one she opened her heart up to. He got to his feet and went to his window. Instead of any normal human, Kai preferred to do things his own, outrageous way. He opened up the window and hopped down to the ground. As Kai made his way to the entrance gate of the dojo he bumped into his rival.

The two stood eye-to-eye so Kai's height didn't give him much advantage in the intimidation factor. Hajime looked past Kai completely avoiding any sort of conflict and continued on his way. There wasn't a chance in hell that he was going to let Kai have the satisfaction in knowing that Hilary didn't want him. Kai turned and was burning holes in Hajime's back as he walked away. Feeling eyes on him, he spun around to face Kai.

"Where is she."

It was more of a demand than a question and Hajime was in no mood to put up with it. He shoved both hands in his pockets and closed his eyes,

"I have no idea. Last I saw her she threw herself into my arms crying."

If Kai had been the average person that overreacted to everything, his mouth would have dropped and hit the floor. What was she doing draping herself all over Hajime? Most important, why was she crying in front of him? The rage boiled in Kai once more and he saw Hajime start to smile.

"Hurts knowing she's found better, doesn't it?" Hajime's final words stung Kai like a million knives and he was prepared to leap from his spot and land on the kid's throat.

Rather than fulfilling his wishful thoughts, he took off in the direction that Hajime came walking from. One thing was for certain; he would get to her before she was pulled in by Hajime. He wouldn't and couldn't lose to this punk. He can't just waltz into the city and claim ownership of anything he wants. Especially if it already belongs to Kai.

Hajime stood in front of the dojo and watched what seemed to be Hilary's 'favourite' go off to get her. He, like Kai, was a fighter. He had convinced himself many years ago that he was allergic to losing, and he damn well won't be losing now. He lost too much on the way to get to where he is now. He thought he had lost Hilary, but he knows that there are ways he can get her back; no matter how sneaky and manipulative they may be. Closing his eyes, Hajime made his way back inside the dojo to meet with the others.

'You picked the wrong war.'

* * *

><p>Kai walked down the streets of Bakuten taking in the sunset. It was breath taking; orange and yellow danced across the skies and dragged in some pink with them. He was taking his time and enjoying his walk because he already knew where Hilary would be. He knew she would have gone home by that time so she could feed Pochie. Also, home was her 'safe place'; it was the only place she could express her emotions freely without anyone there to judge her. The wind began to pick up pace as the colours from the sky disappeared and street lights started coming to life. He reached Hilary's house and stood at the end of the driveway, smiling at Pochie barking at him through the window. He walked up past the garden and to her front door. He rang the doorbell waiting for the brunette to answer… no answer. He rang it again and waited a moment; still nothing. Getting irritated, Kai pressed the doorbell again and again about 60 times while slamming his fist on her front door.<p>

The door suddenly whipped open and there stood Hilary panting with wet hair and… a towel covering her body? Kai stared at her, head to toe, and blinked his eyes a few times registering the scene in front of him before she exploded,

"Kai, you idiot! Why couldn't you wait a few more minutes? God you're so impatient!" He was so rude. She was in the middle of getting the conditioner out of her hair and was interrupted by what sounded like the S.W.A.T team invading her house! "Come on in," she said as she turned and walked back inside.

And how was Kai dealing with this current situation? Let's just say he had to keep his head down to hide his blush from Hilary. What the hell was she thinking? What if it wasn't him and it was really some pervert. 'And she's stupid enough to answer it to anyone,' he thought to himself as he followed her into the house, shutting the door behind him. Although he was thinking of how unbelievably stupid and care-free she was, we can all imagine the other thoughts running through his head. He snapped his head up and out of his thoughts as she began to talk.

"Just wait here until I come back, feed the dog for me why don't ya?"

She headed back upstairs to get the conditioner out of her hair and dry up. As for Kai, he stood there watching her retreating back as she walked up the stairs. His blush became darker, 'I hope this isn't how she treats all her guests.' He couldn't believe how much she affected him; she had made him BLUSH. And this wasn't the first time. It's truly shocking.

He felt a slight tug on the ankle of his pants and saw Pochie pulling at his leg; his little tail was wagging like crazy.

"You hungry little guy?" Kai walked over to the kitchen to get Pochie his food. Opening up the top cupboard, he pulled down his puppy chow and poured it into a small bowl. He gently placed it on the floor and watched as the pup began to eat his dinner. Kai was always intrigued by animals for some reason. Perhaps it was because they were so vulnerable and pure, not to mention loyal. He sat down beside Pochie and smiled while he rubbed the pup's back.

Hilary walked down the stairs wearing a pink t-shirt and her white jammy pants with penguins designed all over them. Her towel was sitting across her shoulders and she started rubbing her head, realizing that her hair was still somewhat damp. That wasn't a big deal thought considering she didn't plan on being out in the cold that night anymore. Yawning, she walked into the kitchen to find no one was in there. 'Don't tell me he stole my dog again…'

She searched the hallways, the dining room, the game room (AN: Bad ass, right?) and then made her way to the living room. When she stepped in, she noticed a head of two-toned blue hair poking out from the side of the couch. She walked over to find Kai now laying on the ground with Pochie cuddled up into his body, napping. Without cluing in she was thinking aloud, Hilary let out her reaction to the scene in front of her.

"Aww! That is so cute! Look at little poochie Pochie pants sleeping with the big grumpypants!"

Kai lifted his head up when he heard Hilary squealing behind him. 'Grumpypants?' Naw, that isn't Kai; he was always the happy camper of the group. She sat down beside where Kai's head was and began to pat her puppy too,

"Sorry it took me so long," Hilary started pulling at pieces of her hair, "I had to re-wash my hair 'cause it started to feel all clumpy and gross."

"It's fine. And for future reference, I suggest you get dressed before answering the door." He turned back to the sleeping Pochie and played with his tail. He didn't even budge, such a good boy.

Now it was Hilary's turn to blush. 'Shit,' she thought to herself. She completely forgot about putting any clothes on when she stomped her way downstairs to yell at whoever was breaking down her door. She continuously pointed her two index fingers together while giggling nervously, clearly embarrassed and swore to never let it happen again. Her eyes peered over at Kai to see that he was paying no attention to her. 'Rude.'

Watching Kai continue to play around with the sleeping puppy (AN: All you dirty-minded people… tsk tsk, it's an innocent puppy!), Hilary felt the guilt creeping up on her. She didn't mean to snap at Kai for silly reasons. Hell, it wasn't even a legitimate reason. Everything seemed to be dropping its weight on her shoulders and she didn't know how to deal with it.

"Kai," she said in a near-whisper, "I'm really sorry about earlier."

"It's fine, it was just a towel," Kai responded without even making eye contact with the already embarrassed girl. Her eyebrow twitched,

"I meant about me yelling at you. It wasn't right, you didn't deserve it. And I'm sorry."

Kai smirked to himself, 'Well this is a first.' Hilary was never one to apologize for anything, no matter if it was her fault in the first place. She had once told Tyson she'd rather boil her face in acid than say sorry for anything; she didn't believe in forgiveness.

"So," she began again, "Now that I think about it, I don't really know anything about you, Kai."

"You know enough."

"No, I mean, I don't even know what your favourite colour is! What kind of friend am I if I don't even know that?"

Friend? Ouch.

"I don't find that foolishness important," Kai said as he carefully stood up trying not to wake the sleeping puppy. He leaned backward and slumped onto the couch,

"I'm going to bed. You can leave now," as he gestured for Hilary to 'shoo'.

Hilary raised her fist trying to piece together all the words and profanities going on in her mind. Instead, she fell back onto the floor and closed her eyes, resting her right arm over them. It had been a long day; maybe sleeping was a good idea.

"Thanks for coming back here, Kai. You didn't have to if you didn't wa-"

"If I didn't want to I wouldn't be here right now." Kai cut her off, like he always did, and turned to face the inner part of the couch. He was honestly beat; everything within the last few days was way too stressful for him. Too much bullshit was piling up on one plate.

She sat up and crawled over to where Kai was laying and rested her head on his shoulder, "Hey Kai, what **is **your favourite colour?" She had to admit that she became curious after bringing it up earlier. She didn't know anything about Kai and it was starting to get to her.

"Go away," he replied in the middle of a yawn. She got up and sat on the couch beside Kai and shook him by the shoulder.

Kai sat back up groaning and just stared at her, seeing that her hair was still wet, he took the towel she had from around her shoulders. He opened it up and placed it on her head, shaking out her hair.

"You're gonna get sick." He could be so sweet, just so gentle sometimes

"But Kaaiiii~" she whined.

"Don't bug me about it."

"It's not that big of a deal though! Just tell me!"

"Exactly. Not a big deal." With being sweet, he was also so stubborn. What was the big deal about him telling her what his favourite colour was? He made it seem like it was an ancient super-secret or something. He stopped shaking out her hair and her ruby orbs looked up to meet violet. His hands were still on top of the towel resting on her head. She pouted at him, clearly desperately trying to get an answer from him. Kai sighed,

"Not gonna happen."

"Oh come on! You're such a jer-" He cut her off by covering her face and shaking out her hair with the towel again. He smiled to himself as she pushed the towel off of her and huffed, looking up at him again with her furrowed eyebrows. 'Your eyes are so beautiful.' Kai used every ounce of will power he had to keep himself from blurting his thoughts out loud to Hilary; she would think he was a fool. And he was no love-sick puppy. That was Pochie's role.

"Okay then how about this," she began, again, and holding up a finger almost tempted to poke his nose.

"Every day, you're going to tell me 3 things about yourself, okay? I think it would be both fun and beneficial seeing as you're still a mystery to me."

This girl can't be serious. That was the most stupid idea Kai had ever heard. Why would she bother coming up with something she knew he would protest against?

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No."

"With a cherry on top?" At this point she had resorted to the oh so famous puppy-eyes. Her ruby eyes became bigger, brighter, and filled with cute sadness. There's no way he could say no, right? Wrong.

Kai laid himself back down on the couch and turned his back to her.

"It's time for bed. Be a good girl and go up to your room."

Hilary looked at him completely dumbfounded. 'He really thinks he rules the roost!'

"Ugh! Kai, you suck!" She got to her feet and stomped her way over to the stair case and turned back around.

"You should tell me more things, you know. Then maybe I could get closer to you!" She continued her stomping fit up the stairs and into her room. She pulled the door over, not shutting it completely in case Pochie wanted to go in, and hopped into her bed. 'The nerve of that guy!' All she wanted to do was get to know him a little better, was that so bad?

* * *

><p>Kai awoke to the sound of whining and something biting at his nose. His groggily opened up one eye to see he was face to face with none other than the adorable Pochie.<p>

"What are you doing?" Kai asked the pup while sitting up with his hand ruffling his hair. He looked over at the clock above the television and it was only 3am.

Just the sound of Kai's voice got Pochie excited and he wagged his tail. He started jumping all over Kai and giving him kisses all over his face.

'Nothing better than dog slobber.' He carefully pushed Pochie off of him as he stood up and walked into the kitchen to get his leash. It took Kai a few times to get the leash to hook onto Pochie's collar because one: the dog was so wiggly and wouldn't sit still and two: his vision was still blurry from just waking up. He walked over to the door, unlocked it, and was ungracefully dragged outside to Pochie's usual 'business' spot. Kai stood in the grass with his eyes half shut, clothes all ruffled and his hair a big mess. Yawning, he waited for the dog to finish relieving himself and was dragged back to the front door. He almost fell to the floor when he got inside from the sudden pull from Pochie after re-opening it. He staggered over to the kitchen, slumping onto one of the seats. Nobody ever really knew this, but Kai wasn't really as much of a morning person as everyone made him out to be. Sure he loved being up early to watch the sunset and get his morning training done and over with, but to be up at 3 without any reason was just too much.

Looking back over to the clock he had to mentally correct himself; it wasn't 3am, it was now 3:20. Inwardly groaning, Kai walked over to the stairs carrying Pochie in his arms. If he had to suffer, then so did she. After making it to the top he ventured over to Hilary's room and lightly pushed the door open with the side of his body. He put Pochie down and pushed his bum into the room and shut the door back over. Although it wasn't in his nature, Kai was praying that the dog would stay awake and drive Hilary as crazy as he was. Before he could step away from the door, he heard a faint noise coming from inside her room. He slightly opened the door back up, making a small creak, and saw Hilary sitting up in her bed rubbing her tired eyes.

Kai stepped into the room and made his way to the sleepy girl,

"What are you doing still awake?"

"I got up an hour ago and haven't been able to fall back asleep," she yawned.

"So… uh, what do you want me to do about it?" Kai asked, feeling a little stupid. But he was right, what did she expect him to do at this time of night?

"I don't know, there's just a lot on my mind. My thoughts won't shut up." She was aggravated and tired; not a good combination. She blinked a couple times to focus her eyes on Kai and giggled when she saw how he looked. 'He's like a little kid.'

Kai looked down at himself wondering what she was laughing about. It's not his fault her dog can't hold it in. it's not his fault he was dragged outside half-sleeping. And it definitely wasn't his fault that he cared this much to be there at her house and take care of things.

"Yeah, laugh all you want. But tomorrow you're waking up to take him out."

Hilary kept her smile as she looked up at Kai, "You know, you remind me a lot of my brother. He always complained about everything he had to do no matter what it was."

"Really?" He had no better answer to what she just said, he didn't want to accidently offend her or make her cry again. He walked over and sat on the bed beside her. "What was he like?"

She couldn't believe it. Kai was actually interested in something that had to do with her. She knew that he obviously cared about her situation because he wouldn't have stayed the night if he didn't, but she couldn't get over how different he was being with her. He was much more talkative and seemed to actually want to know more about her.

"Well, he was brave, strong, courageous, outgoing, lovable, kind. My brother was everything I aspired to be. He got really good grades, he helped everyone with anything they needed him for. I can't really remember everything about him, but he was someone that was liked by everyone. I don't think there was a person in the world that didn't smile after meeting him."

'And she says I remind her of him. Score one for Kai.' He was now keeping a mental score board between himself and Hajime; Kai has officially gone crazy. Nonetheless, he was happy about the simple fact that she was telling him all this. He let her continue on with her stories about how Gorou saved a little boy's cat from a tree (AN: Typical, I know.), how he was Vale Victorian for his graduating class in high school, and how he basically raised Hilary. Her parents were so busy with their work-lives that they barely had the time to be with her. He taught her how to read, write, ride a bike; you name it. As she continued to talk, Kai really started to understand why she was as stubborn and brute as she was. She was raised by a guy for heaven's sake, she was bound to pick up on some of his boyish characteristics. Not only that, but Kai also understood why she feels the way she does, and why she reacts the way she does when he's brought up. He somewhat better understood the pain she was in, and how hard it was and still is for her to manage with her loss. Gorou really was her whole world.

She was getting to an end of her story about when she almost lit him on fire during his birthday when Kai piped in,

"What did you get him for his birthday?"

Hilary was taken by surprise; she forgot that Kai was sitting there listening to her ramble on about something that was probably so boring to him.

"O-oh, well, I saved up my own money and bought him a blue sweater. It was his favourite colour."

"Same."

"Hmm?" She didn't understand what he meant by that. Same what; he got a blue sweater for his birthday, too?

"Blue. It's my favourite colour."

Hilary's eyes lit up after his explanation and she put her hands together excitedly,

"Really! I had a feeling it was because you're always wearing blue and- aww Kai, you finally told me!" She was beaming with happiness as her delayed response kicked in. She pulled him into a hug and went on about how he still has two more things to tell her within the next 20-so hours.

"I'm happy you finally told me." Her smile warmed his heart, there was no denying that. He tried to hold back his smile but to no prevail. His eyes met hers as he shared her smile. Breaking contact he got up and stood beside her bed where she was sitting. He bent over and kissed her forehead,

"Enough talking. Go back to bed." He made his way to the door and quietly opened it, carefully trying not to wake up the sleeping Pochie. He was up long enough, for an hour or two at most, and he needed to make up for his lost sleep. He stepped out the door shutting it behind him,

"I'll see you in the morning."

He left Hilary sitting on her bed. She was stunned. Absolutely, positively shocked. She was so overwhelmed with butterflies in her tummy and her face was burning up. She didn't think Kai was capable of doing what he just did. 'He…He kissed me.' It wasn't a real kiss though, right? It was just a friendly peck on the forehead to tell her goodnight without having to talk. Yes, that was exactly it. She concluded that Kai did it merely because he didn't want to waste his breath saying goodnight to her when he could do a simple gesture. But it was much more than that; he seemed so genuine. He listened to her go on and on about her history with her brother and everything else that came to mind. He really was a great listener; he didn't interrupt her once during her stories. And, surprisingly, he seemed interested in everything she was saying; he didn't seem bored or try to brush off what she was saying. Kai had never acted like that with her like that before, let alone anyone. She dropped back onto her pillow and pulled up her covers to her chest as she cuddled with them. She closed her eyes as she smiled and sighed happily to herself,

"See you in the morning,"

And she fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Hilary woke up with a stretch and smiled up at her ceiling. Not only did she have one of the best nights, but she already had an amazing dream. In it, she was living back in the house she grew up in. She and Kai had been dating for a few years and he eventually proposed to her. They were happy together, and her brother, Gorou, was still alive. He met Kai and accepted him into the family like his own brother; trust, getting his approval was very rare meant everything. Minori and his mother were there, too, both smiling and happy for Hilary when she told them the good news. When she told the Blade Breakers they were all so happy; especially Ray, who saw Hilary as a little sister. The whole neighbourhood found out about it and they threw her a congratulatory party. Everybody Hilary had ever known throughout her life was there, all but one; Hajime. He was in her dream just like everyone else but he was more of a shadow lurking around every so often.<p>

She closed her eyes and looked back up at the ceiling, 'I wonder how he's doing.' She had to admit she felt pretty bad for being so rude to him. She didn't intentionally mean to hurt his feelings or anything, he brought it upon himself.

'That's right!' she thought as she sat up, pumping her fist into the air, 'He should be the one apologizing!'

She swung her legs over to the side of her bed and stood up. 'Alright, time to beat an apology out of him. And it better be a good one!' She went to the bathroom to get herself ready for the day; her outfit consisted of black sweats that were tight at the ankle, a yellow t-shirt with a white sweater on top and her Nike dunks. She grabbed onto the spindle at the top of the stairs, spun around it and hopped down to the bottom step. She was prepared for a more positive day and she wouldn't let anything ruin it for her.

She skipped her way into the kitchen to start on breakfast and was startled when she saw Kai already wide awake reading the newspaper. He was sitting in the chair and beside him were two plates filled with bacon, eggs, and sausage. To complement the plates of food were two glasses of orange juice.

"Morning Kai," she chirped with a sweet smile, "Wow, I never knew you could cook! I could have done it for you, y'know."

"I took it upon myself to make it in case you made the eggs black," still looking at his paper and ignoring the now fuming Hilary. 'Okay Hilary, pick your battles. This one isn't worth it. He made you food, now sit.'

She took her seat at the table, thanking him before she dug in. He folded up the paper and put it down beside him on the table while watching her eat. 'I don't even think she's chewing it… she's just sort of inhaling it.' Kai couldn't believe his eyes; Hilary had the appetite of a man. He chuckled at his thought and pictured small, fragile, petite Hilary standing beside some huge man built like a brick wall, but both ate the same amount.

'Learn something new every day.' Which reminded him,

"I'm allergic to cats."

Hilary looked up from her half eaten plate with a questioning look,

"Well it's a good thing I have a dog!" Kai sweat-dropped; she clearly forgot about the deal she made with him. She was so oblivious sometimes.

"That's two new things I've told you about myself. Now it's your turn."

Hilary stuck her tongue out and smacked her forehead,

"Hehe oopsie, I forgot! Umm, okay, let's see," she pondered to herself in a dramatic way. Sticking up her chin and placing her hand under it pretending she was some Einstein.

"My favourite flower is a calla lily," she answered with a smile. Kai stored that in the back of his mind; it might prove to be beneficial one day.

The two finished their breakfast randomly chatting every so often about whatever came to mind. Hilary cleared the plates from the table and set them in the dishwasher. She walked back over and stook by the table, patted her tummy and theatrically pointed to the door, placing her one foot on the chair.

"Onward, Hiwatari! To Tyson's we must go!"

'Is she on crack?' Kai thought to himself. He didn't understand what was with her and her sudden outbursts; not that he was complaining, he preferred when she was in a good mood, but at this point in time she was borderline crazy. 'I guess it's better than seeing her cry.'

He got up from his seat and pushed his chair back under the table. He followed the nutcase in front of him out the door and to the sidewalk, still questioning himself whether or not it was safe to be so close to so much… happy. He was practically skipping down the sidewalk, turning to face him every once in a while, walking backwards, and talking about nonsense. He wasn't paying attention most of the time and he walked with his eyes closed and arms folded across his chest. Yes, he had to keep up his trademark demeanour while in public. He couldn't let people know that the 'ice-block-for-a-heart' Kai was letting his guard down around a girl. No way, no how, not gonna happen.

As they continued their walk back to the dojo, Hilary started singing to herself. Kai listened more intently; the words were all jumbled up and she was mumbling some of them. Maybe it was some new song she just heard and was trying to get the lyrics right, 'Whatever.' He didn't really care what she did or said when they're together. As long as she was in his sight and was in reaching distance, he was fine with it.

"Hey Kai," Hilary turned to face him walking backwards, "I've taken up writing, well more like poetry I guess, and I wanted to show you some of my work. Is that alright? I know they might suck but you could give me some constructive criticism, right? Oh… I bet you'll most definitely criticise," she gave a light laugh, "But hey, at least it's something!"

He opened his eyes as he listened to her keep rambling on about her sudden interest in writing. Maybe this was her way of opening up to him; Kai smiled victoriously to himself. That means he has the upper hand in this war, hell yeah!

'Has she shown anyone else? Or told them about it?' Kai would have to investigate that further, just to be safe. He didn't want to feel so wonderful if he turned out to be the last one to find out. 'Knowing how shitty my luck is, everyone probably knew the first day she started writing.'

They arrived at the dojo and were greeted by Grandpa.

"What's up homegirl? You're lookin' mighty happy today, that's good to see!" he shifted his attention to Kai, "Why ya lookin' so glum? Take in the positive energy Hilary is givin' off and cheer up!"

Both Hilary and Grandpa started laughing as he taunted Kai, who didn't find this humorous at all.

"I'll smile when I choose to," Kai said, obviously irritated at the laughing duo in front of him. He walked away from them huffing and puffing (AN: And blowing the house down!) and made his way to the back where the boys were practicing.

"That's new, the dude usually never responds to me," Grandpa stated with a huge smile still plastered on his face, "Maybe he's thinkin' of me as his grandpa now!"

Grandpa could be right, but also be wrong. Kai never really did have a grandfather because his was, well, evil as hell. He never had a family either; the only family he ever knew were the Blitzkreig Boys and the Blade Breakers. But on the other hand, maybe he was starting to warm up now because of how much extra time he was spending with Hilary. Sure it was only a few days, but it was better than it was before. He couldn't lie to himself about how much he loved the time he had with her; he never really had time for anything. She was different from everyone else in his life. He trusted Hilary; he knew she would never abandon him or push him away. He had a sense of need with her, not only because she needed him there to protect her, but because he wanted to be. He was his happiest when he was with her. He was entranced by everything about her. She could be his new beginning.

Hilary made her way after Kai to the backyard. The trees above were blowing in the wind and leaves were beginning to fall to the ground. This time of year always made Hilary so happy, it meant Halloween was on its way! She made it to the back and saw the boys wrestling and throwing leaves at each other; and by boys, she saw Max, Tyson and Daichi. Kenny was also dragged into the mess desperately trying to get away from the evil clutches of Tyson. Ray was sitting on the dojo floor laughing at his immature friends, but secretly wishing he could join. Kai stood against the side of the dojo with his arms crossed and eyes closed, but there was something different about him; he seemed…awkward. Like he didn't want to be there with his friends. Hilary walked over to where Kai and Ray were and sat between them.

"Hey Ray, what's up?" Ray was someone Hilary could say whatever she wanted to and he would just laugh it off and probably mess around with her hair. He gave a sly look to Kai before smiling over to her,

"Morning Hil. Tyson and Daichi woke up and dragged Kenny out into the cold and stuffed leaves down his shirt."

Hilary put her hand to her mouth trying to hide her laugh from the suffering Kenny. She laughed even harder when Max jumped out of a huge piles of leaves and scared the poor kid,

"I can't help but laugh," she tried to get out between her giggles, "Kenny's face is priceless!"

From inside the dojo, Hilary heard someone comment on what she had said,

"I'm sure yours would be worth seeing if you were in that situation."

Hajime walked out putting his jacket on and carrying a rake. Hilary heard Kai make his trademark 'Hn' and didn't bother acknowledging the rockstar. Hajime hopped down from the deck and winked at Hilary,

"You should join in on the fun."

Contemplating the offer, Hilary hesitated before she gave her answer. She promised herself that she would have a fantastic day, but she also said she would get her apology. She put her hands on her hips, preparing herself to lecture Hajime.

"Alright here's the deal. I'll play that stupid little game if you apologize for how you were acting before. It was rude and unacceptable!"

"That's quite the request Tatibana. I need something better than that in return."

At this point Kai's insides were boiling with rage. He knew exactly what Hajime was implying with that but Hilary was too innocent and naïve to notice it. Before Kai could unleash his anger at the twit now standing beside him, Hilary gave her answer,

"I already told you I was going to play you stupid game, isn't that enough?"

"Uhh no, not at all. How about this, if I apologize you have to promise to enter the next contest that Nocturnal Pulse is hosting."

His proposal confused Hilary; why would she want to enter a contest? She would probably just win some really cool shirt or something,

"Fine. Deal."

"Hey that's not fair, I wanna enter a contest too! What do I get to win?" Daichi eagerly asked as he jumped over Tyson and joined the conversation.

"You win the opportunity to sing with us on stage and win $600 000." Hajime knew that would catch anyone's attention, even the sourpuss against the wall. This caught everyone's attention and they were all jumping in front of Hajime's face asking if they could enter the contest.

"Do you know how many donuts I could buy?" Daichi's eyes began to glow, but he was pushed aside by Tyson,

"Forget donuts, think of the buffet!"

"Psh, buffet shmuffet. We could load up on blade parts AND mayonnaise!"

"No way Maxie, we would all go on vacation!"

Everyone turned their attention to Kai, waiting for him to give his opinion on the whole thing.

"I don't have time for foolishness."

"Oh come on Kai," Tyson patted him on the back, "I think it would be fun!"

"We don't even know what we have to do, though." Kenny finally decided to participate in the conversation. He seemed just as interested as the others, minus Kai.

"I'll tell you, but give me a moment. I have to hold up my end of the deal," Hajime said, now facing Hilary.

He slowly took his steps as he walked close enough to Hilary that he could feel her hair rubbing against his chin. He knelt down on one knee, taking her hand and kissing it lightly. He looked up to make contact with her eyes and he saw her blink a few times in confusion. 'She's so oblivious.'

"Hilary, my princess, will you please forgive me for my past actions and words?"

She stared down at him dumbfounded, not quite sure how to respond. Instead of speaking, she smiled softly and nodded her head as he got back to his feet. He could feel the glares behind him coming from Kai but he paid no mind to it.

'Perfect.'

"Alright spit it out, what are the rules?" Ray asked trying to seem as uninterested in this as possible to keep Kai from strangling him.

"It's simple, really," Hajime began, "All you have to do is compete in a singing competition. Also, you must write your own lyrics; winner gets to claim the prizes I just told you."

"Aw yeah, this competition already has a winner and his name is Tys-"

"DAICHI!" Tyson faced Daichi and the two went at it fighting over who the more talented one was.

"That's not too bad, it'll be a blast!" Thank goodness Max was such a bubble of positivity; the others would be lost without him.

"Umm, I don't think that's such a good idea Hajime…" Hilary was terrified of singing and he knew this. Why would he make her agree to such a thing?

"Hilary, relax. Don't be such a negative-Nancy, you'll be fine." Hajime was sure convincing. He ruffled her hair and smiled.

She may have been smiling on the outside, but she sure as hell was not as happy on the inside. She was fuming and had to keep repeating to herself 'Don't kill him, don't kill him, don't kill him.'

"I guess I will too."

The Blader Breakers turned in shock when they heard their captain offer himself to join the contest. They couldn't believe what they were hearing; it must be a sign that the apocalypse was near.

"K-kai… really?" Hilary couldn't believe it, either. 'Kai can't sing, can he?'

"Hey Kai, can I talk to you?" Hilary motioned for him to follow her inside the house and, just like a puppy, he obeyed his command.

Hilary brought him to the living room and sat down on the couch.

"Kai, I know it's hard for you to accept new people into your life, trust me I'm the same way. But can you at least promise to get along with Hajime? We've been friends for a long time and I don't want you guys to fight. You're both important to me in your own ways, and I hate to see you not getting along."

Kai sighed while folding his arms across his chest once more and opened his eyes to look into hers. He was so tempted to tell Hilary exactly what he thought of the prick; every detail. Then again, looking into Hilary's eyes he could see every emotion she was feeling. She hated that they didn't get along and weren't the best of friends but she just didn't get it. She didn't understand that Kai was trying to keep Hilary all for himself and didn't want her associated with anyone else in the world. Especially Hajime. He didn't want to make her upset any more than she already was with their rivalry so settled for a compromise.

"Fine. As long as he doesn't get too close to you. And if he says anything to me, I have to say something back to defend myself."

Hilary giggled and smiled at Kai, "Thank you, it means a lot." She stood up and pulled him into a hug. She started getting used to hugging him that she didn't pause and think before making any contact with him. She liked that they've become like this; there was no fear in how he would react to her touch. He told her that he wanted to be a part of her life, in a way. To be more specific, he said he wanted to protect her and that she wasn't alone. That enough made Hilary the happiest girl alive.

This meant the world to her; her childhood friend and her Kai finally getting along. Woah, wait a minute… 'Her' Kai? She smiled to herself and hugged him tighter as she thought about him belonging to her and only her.

'I wish I didn't have to let go.'

Hilary was abruptly brought out of her thoughts by the sound of Kai's voice. He relaxed his arms around her and backed away so he could look at her face.

"Ramen noodles are my favourite thing to eat."

Hilary smiled up at the man holding her in his arms and pulled away, grabbing onto his hand,

"Bet'cha I'll win the contest and beat you by a landslide!"

"Dreams don't always come true, Hilary."

And with that the two made their way back outside; Hilary still holding onto Kai's hand and pulling him alongside her.

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Man oh man, I'm surprised my fingers haven't fallen off yet lol. So I hope this chapter somewhat made up for how crummy the others have been. I have a lot of ideas rushing through my head and I'm already getting started on chapter 6!

As promised, here's the basics, aka: Dummied Down Version (DDV)

Hilary, Hajime and Minori (the twins) grew up together

Minori and Hajime lost their father when they were very young

Hilary had an older brother, Gorou, that passed away on her 10th birthday from a major car crash

Minori blames himself for it because he got Gorou to go get Hilary's present for him

Hilary shut herself out to everyone, including her family, and she went into depression

After the accident, Hilary's parents wanted a new start and so they moved a year later

Minori and Hajime also moved away, but they went to live in Italy. While living there, their mother got very sick and passed away (so sad, I know)

When Minori and Hajime turned 13, Minori up and dipped and Hajime has no idea where he went

Minori had always constantly blamed himself for the accident and couldn't ever face Hilary again (also, he had a big 'crush' on her but never showed it until he saved her from nearly drowing. Ever since, he had sworn to take care of her)

Hilary's younger brother, Takumi, was born a few years later

Hilary is still haunted by memories of her past and isn't able to cope with it properly because she never lets anyone in; everyone has recently found out she's full of secrets and don't want her to suffer alone

While on tour, the band Nocturnal Pulse found Hajime at a local karaoke bar (not gonna bother putting it in the story, way passed where that would have been brought up) in Italy and thought he would be perfect for joining the group

Hajime's only reason for joining was because he knew Hilary had loved them all her life, and was hoping she still did, so he could eventually meet with her during one of their tours

Kai feels Hilary is the only girl, no, person in the world that he can get close with and open up his heart to

His parents were murdered when he was very young, I think I said somewhere around 5, which is quite depressing

He sees Hajime as a threat to his developing relationship (or so he hopes it is) with Hilary and wants to rid of him. He gets outrageously jealous when he finds out that they're childhood friends because he feels Hajime has the upper hand in their silent rivalry. He wants to find out more about her and protect her from any danger that comes her way

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	6. Room 204

Okay back in story writing mode! I would like to apologize for my grammatical mistakes; I further explain it in chapter 2 of my Finding A Way story. I would like to thank everyone that has reviewed my story so far, it really means a lot! Hopefully this ends up being all you expected it to be!

Summary of excuse for grammar: I get inspired to write during the night so by the time I finish it's around… well right now it's 2:15am and have been writing for quite some time. So when I finish it'll be maybe 4:00am and I'll think to myself "AH SCREW IT. THEY'LL UNDERSTAND ME!" and I post it without rereading or editing anything. Sooo I'm very sorry!

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

* * *

><p>Chapter 6:<p>

A week has passed since Hajime brought up the proposal of the Blade Breakers entering his bands contest. Everyone has been, surprisingly, hard at work preparing their pieces, rehearsing, and trying to find the perfect melodies. Kenny was headed toward a more modern pop sort of sound, similar to that of Ming-Ming the talentless twit- as Hilary put it. Max and Tyson were preparing a duet, clearly fooling around and working hard to make it funny, smooth, and somewhat serious at the same time. Ray, on the other hand, was focusing more towards a jazzy sort of tune. And where was our favourite cold-hearted captain? He was, as always, over at Hilary's house spending his days with her. Sure he had begun to work on his piece but he wasn't planning on performing it whatsoever.

Hilary was impatiently tapping her pencil on the table and swinging her legs back and forth. Every few seconds she would sigh and lean her head onto her other hand as she stared down at the paper in front of her on the table. She had been working on her lyrics for almost 3 hours and so far she had… one line. One measly line that consisted of the date. She heaved a dramatic sigh and slumped her body down onto the table. She stretched her arms out in front of her so they were hanging off the end.

'This will be the end of me. Life… is done. There is nothing more I can do. I have failed myself, as well as my friends. Maybe even Hajime.'

Kai walked into the kitchen carrying a big bag of food for Pochie. He looked down at the girl in front of him and nearly sweat-dropped. It was a truly shameful sight and he would not allow Pochie's pure puppy eyes be witness to such blasphemy. He set the dog food down and tapped the leg of her chair with the side of his foot,

"Oi, what's wrong?"

"mmhhmmhmhm," Kai couldn't make out what she was saying. Her face was smothered into the side of her arm and all she could make were mumbles.

Kai raised his eyebrow, "Come again?"

She shifted her head so the side of her face was towards him, "I can't do it. I quit."

Kai pulled out the chair beside her and sat down. He grabbed onto the paper under her arms and held it up as he read it.

"Don't bother, there's nothing on it." Hilary, now all gloomy, didn't bother looking up at Kai as he looked over her blank page.

"I see something on it," he said with a smirk. Hilary sat up and looked at him questioningly. Had he gone insane? The page was blank; there was nothing to see.

"I see a lot of potential, Hilary. Maybe you just need to clear your mind."

"There's no need to lie just to make me feel better, y'know. I appreciate the effort and all but come on, it's blank!" Yet another sigh was heaved. Today just wasn't her day. First thing this morning she fell down the stairs. Then when she tried making breakfast she burnt herself with hot oil. Then she couldn't find her hair brush so her hair was a big mess. And now, to make the day better, she had to finish an entire song, rehearse it, and get everything planned out by the end of the week. It was Tuesday so that gave her… four days.

"I'm not lying. Wanna go out for a bit? We can have an early dinner," Kai suggested as he half smiled at the stressed out girl in front of him. He could see a blush creeping on her cheeks and his smile grew a little bigger. 'Whatever helps, right?'

"Are you sure? I don't really have all that much money left," she said, digging into her pockets and finding only twenty dollars. "We can go to McDonalds or something?"

"Ehhhh," Kai held his arms in an 'x'-form in front of his face, "No shit food. We're going to a nice restaurant."

"But-"

"No buts, it's on me. Now let's go." Kai grabbed her hand lifting Hilary to her feet and dragged her out the door as she protested. He didn't care to listen to her try and reason with him about covering half the bill now and the rest later; she was stressed and she needed a way out. Just so happens the way out happened to be Kai. Hilary gave up her whining and complaining as they entered the downtown part of the city. Kai attempted to pull his hand away from Hilary's after she calmed down but she held on and was now the one dragging him from store to store.

"Wow Kai, look! Isn't it beautiful?" She was peering in the window at a gold bracelet with a little diamond heart in the centre; it matched her necklace perfectly. The woman standing in the window smiled as she watched Hilary's eyes grow bigger with every item she spotted and turn every so often to tell Kai what she thought of it.

"Yeah, it's pret-" He was jerked away from the bracelet in the window and pulled off in the other direction when she saw Halloween costumes for sale.

"Kai look!" She held up a full-piece cat suit, "You should be a kitty for Halloween!"

The look on Kai's face said it all; "I hate it. No way. It's ugly. I'd rather die." Hilary pouted for a split second until she whipped another costume off the racks. This one made his eyebrow twitch and his lip almost quivered. It was a massive Pikachu suit.

"AWW! Kai try it on, try it on!" She pouted out her lip and gave him her infamous puppy eyes. Horror was written all over his face,

"No way in hell."

"But Kaaiiiii~"

"We're leaving." With that he grabbed the giant Pikachu out of her hands and threw it on the floor, following with the famous death glare. He then grabbed her hand and led her to where the restaurant was. Hilary sulked to herself as she was trying to keep up with Kai and free her hand. 'Geez, just wanted to have some fun with the guy…'

He pushed through the people crowding up in the streets making sure that Hilary was keeping up and abruptly stopped in front of a huge sign. She bumped into Kai's back without realizing it and gave him a light punch on the shoulder.

"You should warn me next time!" Before she paid attention to what Kai was about to say, her jaw dropped at the scene in front of her. She followed the sign from bottom all the way to the top; it ended at a balcony that overlooked the entire city. She stared in awe as she saw (AN: rhymed!) limousines pull up and people in suits and gowns stepped out. Some pedestrians surrounded their cars trying to take pictures of them while others stared them down with either looks of jealousy or amazement.

"Hilary are you listening to me?" She snapped out of her trance at the sound of his voice. She shifted her eyes over to Kai who didn't look too pleased.

"Hehe, sorry," she apologized, "But look at these people! They're so high class and seem so important. What are they doing in a place like this though?"

"These are the people that basically run the country," Kai explained, "Every so often they all meet here and discuss matters going on within the ministry and such. Now come on."

Before he could drag her off again she stopped his hand from grabbing hers.

"Nuh uh, no way! I can't go in there looking like this; I'm a mess!" It was true; she certainly didn't meet the standards that appeared to be at this place. She had on her sweats and one of Kai's sweaters since hers were still waiting for the wash.

"You look beautiful, now come on."

"Sorry Kai, but you're gonna have to go on without me!" She folded her arms across her chest and faced the opposite direction of him. If she went in there, she wouldn't only embarrass herself but also Kai. She couldn't do that and ruin his reputation.

Kai shrugged his shoulders, spinning on his heel and heading towards the entrance,

"Suit yourself. Stand there and be stared at everyone in public while I enjoy my spot hidden in the booths."

She stood there in the same position for no longer than a minute before noticing that people really were staring at her. She nervously looked around her and shuffled her way into the building.

"Welcome, young miss," greeted a formally dressed hostess behind a podium, "Are you dining for one or meeting with someone?"

"U-umm, well my friend just walked in here and-"

"Oh! You must be with Mr. Hiwatari. He said there would be one more tagging along; please, right this way."

The young woman ushered for Hilary to follow her over to an escalator in the middle of the room. The place was massive; the lights were dimmed almost blue and the ceilings were high. Swarovski chandeliers hung above every table, accompanied by matching cutlery. Hilary stepped into the elevator as the hostess pressed the button to go up. When the doors opened, they stepped into a room full of chattering men and women that seemed much more intimidating than the ones on the first floor. 'These must be the big shots.' Hilary felt uneasy with every step she took; she didn't like the unnerving feeling of not fitting in with these people. The woman walked her across the room to a set of glass double-doors that opened up to a balcony. The woman didn't follow Hilary in, but rather handed her the menu and wished her the best of times here at the restaurant. She walked further out into the open balcony and found Kai sitting alone in his booth. The backing of the seat was white leather and the table was made of marble. A chandelier-much more extravagant than the ones downstairs hung from the ceiling and there were thin white drapes hanging along the open sides of the balcony where they could see out into the night.

"Woah." She was astonished; she had never seen anywhere so… royal. "Kai this place is amazing!"

She walked over and took her seat across from where he was sitting. He opened his eyes and with a smug look on his face began,

"When you're the best, you only get the best."

"Oh gee thanks Kai, I didn't think you thought so highly of me." Did Kai really think that she wouldn't have had a smart ass remark to throw back at him? Surely he couldn't be that stupid.

"You're hysterical," Kai said sarcastically rolling his eyes, "This is the best spot in the city and I thought you should get a look at it for yourself. Maybe it'll inspire you."

She scanned the area around her, taking in its beauty. It was truly magnificent, everything was so perfect.

"Yeah, yeah. Now let's hope the food is as great as this place is!" She smiled at the man across from her, opening up her menu and looking through to see if there was anything appetizing.

First page. Appetizers. Garlic bread. Jaw drops.

"Holy shit! Kai look at the price of these things, this is unbelievable!" She whipped the menu around shoving it in his face and pointing to where the pricing was for just a slice of garlic bread.

"…..And?" What was her big problem, it's not like she was the one paying for it.

"It's twenty-five dollars just for THAT! Kai I barely have enough for water let alone a piece of bread!"

"Relax, I'll take the damage for it so just pick whatever you want."

"Damage? You mean the entire bill? No, no, no. I can't let you do that, honestly. It's way too much and I'll have to work my entire life, and then my kids will have to work their entire lives just to pay you back for a meal!"

Kai placed his index finger on her lips to silence her.

"Stop. If you like something, it's yours to have." He pulled back and continued reading his menu. 'So dramatic.'

There was a knock on the doors and the hostess from before pulled one side open,

"I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Hiwatari, but are you and your date ready to order?"

Hilary's cheeks flushed pink and she tried to hide behind her menu. 'Date? Really? She just had to say that!'

Kai cleared his throat before responding, "Yes. I'll have my usual and she'll have the grilled salmon special."

"Will that be all?" The hostess looked over and gave a small smile to Hilary as she attempted to take the menu away. Hilary nodded as she surrendered over her defence-mechanism.

"I've never celebrated Halloween," Kai began as Hilary's eyes met his, "That's why I wasn't so interested in that store earlier. Well, that and the fact that everything you picked out was hideous."

With her eye now twitching, she responded, "You're so rude sometimes! I thought they were adorable! But Kai, really, wow. You've never ever ever ever celebrated Halloween? Never went out trick or treating? Didn't hand out candy?"

"Negatory." Hilary couldn't believe it; what kid didn't go out just to get free candy?

"You're kidding! That's insane, everyone has experienced Halloween in one way or another!"

"I never had anyone to enjoy it with me. I grew up on my own." Ouch, that stabbed her heart. How could she have been so ignorant and forget that Kai never really had any parents during his childhood. She didn't mean to offend him, things just came out the wrong way.

"Kai I-"

"Don't apologize, you didn't mean anything by it."

"I know but I'm still sor-"

"Don't be."

"Can you stop cutting me of-"

"No." Kai smirked with his final remarked as he saw Hilary become full of rage. He loved pushing those buttons that pissed her off; it was entertaining for him. He always got a kick out of her reactions to things, especially when he was the cause of them.

"I swear, Hiwata-"

"Your food is ready, sir." The waitress walked in carrying their plates to find Hilary half-standing from her seat with her fist in the air and Kai smiling at the furious girl. 'These two are like a married couple.'

She gently placed their plates in front of them and left the two alone to eat. The breeze had slightly picked up and the curtains softly blew with the wind. The sky was pitch black and filled with twinkling stars.

"Hey Kai," Hilary began, "Thank you for everything. I don't think I ever really show you how much I appreciate everything you do for me. It means a lot so… thanks again."

"No big deal," he said warmly before digging into his food. But before Hilary could follow suit, she had just one more thing to ask him,

"How are you gonna afford all this?" Without looking up from his meal he replied,

"Eh, I've got connections."

The two ate quietly while occasionally making conversation with the other. Hilary was at peace in her mind; for once, there weren't a million things running through it at once. Instead, all she could think of was Kai. He seemed content, too, as he sat with Hilary in his company. He wouldn't ever tell her, or anyone for that matter, but this was something that he had always loved to do. His earliest memory as a child was being with his parents sitting on the deck in their backyard garden eating dinner in the night. All the small lights were on around them and they talked about their days; well, in Kai's case, his adventures of the day. He was the type of kid that was motivated by curiosity. If he saw something in his room that wasn't there before, such as a new toy, he would investigate it and put the toy through an interrogation process. Anyway, main point is that he loved being surrounded by people and laughter. His father had a booming laugh that always got everyone going where ever he was. His mother, although more timid by nature, always had funny jokes to share and knew exactly what to say to make anyone smile.

Kai was snapped out of his memories when he heard Hilary's phone start to ring.

"I'm so sorry, I should have turned it off!" She apologized as she reached into her pocket to take out her cell phone.

"It's fine, who is it?" Some people were so inconsiderate. Didn't they know that she was with Kai and there were to be no interruptions? 'Probably that damn Hajime.'

"It's my mom," she stated more as a question, "I wonder what she wants. Mind if I take this?"

"Go right ahead." Phew, it was just her mom. Good. Saves him from having to hunt down that no good two-faced ass-kissing blood curdling-

"What? What's wrong? When will you be home?" Kai saw Hilary had gone right from happy, to confused, to worried, and now terrified.

"Alright I'll be there in an hour." She shut off her phone and turned to Kai, tears brimming her eyes.

"I'm so sorry but I really need to go," she quickly said as she stood up and reached into her pocket to throw her money on the table and rush out.

"Wait, what's going on?" Kai stood from his seat and walked over to her side of the booth, looking down at her with concern.

"It's my dad. They ended up getting back from their trip a week ago because he fainted out of nowhere on the resort. They were in the hospital there for a few days and were transferred back here because he insisted on seeing the family doctor," her bottom lip began quivering, trying to hold back tears, "They didn't tell me because they didn't think it was such a big deal until this morning when the doctor said they found something unusual in his MRI results."

Kai was at a loss for words. This was all so sudden he had no idea how to react to it; more importantly, he had no idea how to stop the tears from filling up and falling down her cheeks. He pulled her into a hug and patted her head gently, trying to calm her down.

"We'll take my car, it's in the underground parking. I'll call for someone to bring it up for us, let's go." He held her hand and they made their way downstairs to the entrance. They briskly walked by the hostess as she called out,

"Mr. Hiwatari, your bill!"

"You know the numbers. Just tab it in," he called back to her without stopping.

The hostess sighed to herself and muttered under her breath, "Must be nice being the heir to billions."

* * *

><p>As they exited the building, Kai's car was waiting there with a man standing next to it with keys.<p>

"Here you are, Mr. Hiwatari. As you requested." Kai snatched the keys from the man's hands, waving a thanks and opened the door for Hilary. He shut the door behind her as she hopped in and he strode over to his side. He whipped the door open and slammed it shut back as fast while starting the car,

"Do you know how to get there?" He saw Hilary nod,

"It's across the street from the new mall they're building."

With his answer Kai started up the engine and roared down the streets to their next stop. The entire drive was silent; asides from the screeching of his tires as he made sharp turns. He couldn't stop thinking that everything bad seems to happen to Hilary. No matter what it is, it seemed to be happening to this poor girl. She hadn't done anything wrong in his eyes, so why was she being put through so much hell? There's only so much one person can take; does this girl not have a limit? 'Just give her a break.' Hilary's life seemed to be slowly falling like dominos. It was one thing after another and there wasn't a clear sign of an end to the pattern.

He skidded to a stop as they reached the hospital building and the both jumped out of the car. Kai followed Hilary as she rushed to the front doors and to the reception desks.

"Fumito Tatibana, where's his room!" Her voice cracked as she demanded to know where her father was,

"Go down the left hall, he's in room 204."

The two ran down the hall toward the direction of her father's room. It was an obstacle course trying to get through all the patients and nurses roaming the halls, but they finally made it to his door. She pushed the door open as a doctor walked out. She walked in to see her mom standing beside her father's bed with one hand covering her mouth trying to prevent tears. On the opposite side she saw her brother, Takumi, sitting on a chair he pulled up next to the bed leaning over with his head in his hands. She stormed into the room-with Kai still tagging along behind her- and began questioning her family.

"Is he okay? What did the doctor say? Is he gonna be alright? Has he been eating well? Mom did you forget to give him his medicine?"

Her mother, without knowing, shot a glare over at her daughter. She eased up her stare when she saw Hilary standing there with tears in her eyes and motioned for her to come in for a hug. Hilary did as she was told and was pulled into a tight embrace; almost painful.

"Hilary," her mother started, "Daddy is really sick."

"What kind of sick? Maybe he needs some Buckley's-"

"No Hilary, that's not what I meant."

Not wanting to intrude, Kai stood at the back of the room and watched the scene in front of him unfold. It began with Hilary hugging her mom and asking questions, and ended with Hilary screaming, crying, and dropping to the floor in agony. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Her life was actually starting to fall apart and there was nothing he could do to stop it this time. He wanted to run over and comfort her but he couldn't interfere with family matters. Instead, he figured it wiser to stand outside the door and wait until she was ready to talk to him. He leaned his back against the closed door as he stood in the hallway with his hands balled into tight fists. What he hated more than anything was that the girl he loved was in excruciating emotional pain right now and there was no cure for it; not even him. All odds were against him on this one. No, all odds were against her. She was suffering now more than she ever has since her brother's life was unfairly taken.

The same doctor that was in the room passed by Kai on his way to the vending machine, happily whistling. Acting on impulse, Kai grabbed the man by the shirt and brought him close to his face.

"How can you be so happy after what you just did to their family?" The anger in Kai's words was quite evident as he spoke through his clenched teeth.

"I-I'm sorry but there's nothing I can do! We don't have the proper equipment necessary to treat him here in Bakuten!"

Kai dropped the man, glaring down at him, "And you're not going to try to change that, correct? I thought you doctors took an oath to protecting and saving life; yet here you are trying to tell me that you're not gonna make an effort to get what's needed to save this man's life. You're full of contradictory bullshit."

Before he broke anything or felt like beating this man to a pulp, Kai raged out of the hall and out the side door. He needed fresh air. He pulled out his phone and called Ray. After a few rings, Ray's happy voice picked up the phone, only pissing Kai off even more.

"Hey Kai, what's up?"

Kai explained the situation to Ray in full detail. It was completely silent on the other end of the line when Kai finished because, like him, Ray was rendered speechless. His job was to try and keep it secret from the others because one: it was none of their business and two: it would just cause more of a headache for Hilary.

"Alright, I understand. But what are you gonna do, Kai?"

It took him a moment to come up with an answer for his friend,

"I'm going to be with her and do what I can for her and her family."

Kai shoved his phone back into his pocket and stared out into the empty streets. He needed to calm his nerves down before he went anywhere near Hilary again; he needed to make sure that he was in a good state of mind. After taking in a few hundred deep breaths and clearing out his mind, he made his way back to the room. He didn't bother opening the door because he knew it wasn't time for him to make an appearance just yet. He leaned against the wall beside the door and listened to the sobs coming from the other side.

An hour had gone by and the sobs become soft whimpering. The door slowly opened and Hilary's mom stepped out shutting the door behind her. She turned to face Kai and began to speak,

"You must be Kai, yes?" He unfolded his arms and opened his eyes to the woman in front of him. He nodded his head in answering her question.

"My Hilary has told me a lot about you; she seems to admire you. I was informed by Tyson's grandfather that you have been taking care of her while we have been gone. I wanted to formally thank you for everything you have done for my daughter." She slightly bowed in front of him and remained looking at the floor,

"She has been through so much, you have no idea," the woman's voice proved she was fighting back her tears, "Even when Gorou died she was smiling and telling everyone else that she will take care of us; that everything was fine and to stop crying. How could we have been happy with our son's death? We didn't realize that with our mourning we were pushing her away when she was trying to reach out for us. We were a lot harsher on her than we should have been and didn't think twice about how she could have been feelings inside. She's put up a wall and hasn't allowed herself to properly mourn and grieve over her hardships in life. It's impossible to get through to her, but you, Kai," she looked back up at him with a tear stained face, "You're the only one that she's been so open with. I beg of you, please watch over her and make sure nothing ever harms my little girl. All she needed was someone to be there for her; to comfort her, hug her, reassure her that good things will happen in life. She needed me to love her but I failed as a mother on that part."

The woman standing in front of Kai broke down to the floor bawling her eyes out. He knelt down beside her and put his hand on her shoulder,

"I promise I'll be everything to and for Hilary."

"Please," she sobbed, "Go see her."

Kai helped her stand up and sit down on a chair on the other side of the door before entering the room. He turned the handle and stepped in, quietly shutting it behind him. He walked over to the bed that her father was laying in, looking over to the side where Takumi still sat with his head in his hands. Fumito, her father, had an oxygen mask strapped to his face and he had blotches of pale spots on his face. His eyelids were tinged a pale-yellow, clearly revealing that this man was very ill. Kai closed his eyes sighing to himself; this was a sight he never wanted to be exposed to.

He glanced around the room trying to spot Hilary, but she was nowhere to be found. The room wasn't very large; it consisted of the room itself and a washroom, so there really weren't many places she could have gone to. He slowly turned the handle to the bathroom and gently pushed it open. He looked around every corner of the room and there was still no sign of her. He stepped in and quietly shut the door behind him. He walked over to where the shower curtain was pulled completely over and opened it. His heart sunk so deep it could have hit his stomach. There was Hilary, sitting on one side of the bathtub in fetal position crying into her knees.

"Hilary?" He softly asked, trying not to scare her. Her head slowly rose up from her knees at the sound of his voice and she looked at him. Her eyes were hollow and dull; they weren't the bright and beautiful ruby eyes that he was used to getting lost in. She said nothing to him as she stared up at him, tears silently pouring down her cheeks.

Kai couldn't erase the pain he was feeling in his heart when he saw her like this. He slowly climbed into the tub on the opposite side of her,

"Hilary, why are you here by yourself?" Nothing. No response from her. Usually when he said her name she would pique up and smile at him. Or even blush a little at times which he loved more than he would ever admit. He didn't like the way things were right now, she wasn't herself. Sure he had seen her really upset, even cry a few times, but this? This wasn't even Hilary.

"Can I sit closer, Hilary?" She subtly nodded, enough that Kai would have caught on to it. He scooted closer to her and he placed either side of his legs on her sides, resting against the tub.

"You don't need to cry to yourself, you know. I'm here, too."

Silence.

"Come," he said quietly as he pulled her into his arms. As soon as her face made contact with his chest she began to sob again. Pain wasn't something that someone could burden on their own shoulders, so Kai offered his to her. She wasn't going to struggle on her own. She had him now, and he promised he would get rid of anything that hurt her. She wrapped her arms around his neck as she leaned into him pouring out all her emotions. He held her in silence, letting her pain wash over him. He held her closer and whispered into her ear,

"I'm your hand to hold."

* * *

><p>The next morning at the dojo, the Blade Breakers were all hanging around outside waiting for their captain to show up for practice. He was already an hour late, which was very rare for Kai.<p>

"Ugh," Tyson huffed, "He bitches at us for sleeping in 5 minutes and here he goes not showing up at all!"

"Yeah!" Daichi agreed, "It's always us getting in trouble, but what about him?"

In Kai's defence, Kenny added, "Well he is spending a lot more time with Hilary, so maybe something came up. Pochie probably had a doctor's appointment or something."

"Yeah right Chief. Even if Kai did have a heart there's no way he would use it up with a dog."

"I dunno Tyson," Max chipped in, "He seems to have developed a soft spot for both Hilary and Pochie."

"Maybe he fell in love with the dog!" Tyson laughed hysterically at his own joke, along with Daichi, as the others around him sweat-dropped at his stupidity.

Ray sat quietly in the dojo listening to the guys talking outside. He inwardly sighed, having to keep reminding himself that the others didn't know what was really going on. He wished he could explain everything so they weren't acting so ignorantly, but it wasn't his place to. As he continued listening to his teammates now rambling on about how Kai has taken a sudden interest in beastiality, another voice joins into the conversation.

"What are you all doing sitting out here doing nothing? It's a beautiful day; perfect for inspirational writing." It was Hajime.

"We're still waiting for Kai," Max answered, shrugging his shoulders, "We were supposed to meet and catch up with some practice after spending so much time on our songs but Kai hasn't shown up."

"Yeah!" Tyson agreed, "He didn't even call us!"

"That's odd," Hajime said, sounding slightly mischievous, "Maybe he's still with Hilary in the hospital."

Ray stood up and walked over to where they were all standing outside. He couldn't have just heard that right… 'How does he know?'

"What? Why's Hilary in the hospital?" asked Daichi, instantly switching from curious to worried.

"It's her father, he's become really sick."

All the boys gasped quietly, showing their concern for their friend.

"Is he okay?"

"What about Hilary, is she alright?"

"Well you see," Hajime started, smirking over in Ray's direction, "Hilary's dad is dying."

The boys' eyes widened in shock after hearing the sudden news. Ray was especially taken by surprise; there's no way Kai would have told him. And according to Kai, Hilary was in no condition to pick up a phone and spread the word. Tyson was the first to speak up,

"WHAT? You're kidding, right? What's going on?"

"He has a tumour in his brain and there's no cure for it." The way he casually put it made Ray's blood boil. Who did this jackass think he was sharing her business with everyone? Yeah they were all friends, but this damn bastard…

"Oh my gosh. Poor Hilary…"

"May I make a suggestion?" All eyes were on Hajime as he spoke up once more,

"Why don't we all go visit her at home with some 'get better' flowers?"

"Yeah that would be nice, and some for her dad, too," came Chief.

Ray glared at Hajime in disbelief. He was beginning to see why Kai hated him so much; he was conniving, a downright douche bag. 'Kai is not gonna be happy with this.'

And off they went.

* * *

><p>FIN!<p>

Well this took a lot longer to get written up than I had expected! I've been working on some major essays and preparing for exams that begin next week. Way too stressful for me to keep up with two on-going stories at the same time. Well I hope you all liked it! It moved along pretty slow and there wasn't much drama during the beginning of this story, so I do apologize. But I promise that the next one will be a little more… nerve-racking, you could say. I had another comment I wanted to make but I forgot so.. :D

Oh yes, and thank you for the reviews! They really mean a lot to me, and I hope to see some more! I'll be starting chapter 7 bright and early tomorrow morning so I have my ideas laid out and get it finished –hopefully – within the next few days.

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	7. There When You're Awake

Hihi! I'm back again for another chapter, woohoo! Starting off... sorry, I lied. I didn't write out my ideas after I completed chapter 6. I'm sorry! I'll try and get this chapter to be as long as possible to make up for my incompetence.

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Seven:<p>

The boys reached Hilary's house after going out and getting her a bouquet of flowers and some chocolates. Yes, it seemed more romantic than anything else, but it was the sweetest thing they could think of for their friend. The bouquet consisted of tiger lilies, baby's breath, and one large white gardenia in the centre. Tyson and Max raced up to the doorbell and both pushed the button at the same time. They stood waiting, but no answer. This time Daichi cut between them and rang it twice... still no answer. Waiting impatiently, Tyson pushed the button over and over again until he heard something inside. He pressed his ear to the door but he couldn't hear anyone talking.

"Hey guys, I think someone's in there," he said, turning to face his friends behind him.

"Maybe she's sleeping Ty, it's a pretty rough time for her right now." Max had a point. Hilary may have come off as hard core and carefree, but she was still human and felt everything to its extreme.

Tyson peeked over at the window and walked toward it. He pressed his face against the window peering inside to find out what he had heard when a face jumped up at him from inside the house.

"AHH A MONSTER!" He fell backwards away from the window, landing on his big 'ole butt. The boys stared at Tyson and then in the window and burst out laughing. There stood Pochie leaning on the back of a couch wagging his tail with his tongue sticking out. He barked happily when he saw Tyson's familiar face and his tail wagged faster.

"Oh yeah Tyson, big scary fluffy monster," Ray laughed. He could see the embarrassment and annoyance in Tyson's face so he stopped himself from making the matter worse for his friend. Daichi, on the other hand, didn't care as much.

"AHAHA Tyson you idiot! It's just a little puppy, you think he's gonna jump out of the closet at you tonight? Ahahaha." That did it. Tyson jumped back to his face and shook his fist,

"Why you!" He chased Daichi down to the end of the sidewalk yelling out numerous threats at the monkey boy.

"I wonder where she is. It's not like her to leave Pochie all by himself," Kenny stated, and he was right. Hilary wasn't the type of person to leave someone on their own when they needed her- well, the person is a puppy in this case.

"She's probably still at the hospital," came Hajime with his hands in his pockets, "She probably just wants to be alone right now. But the pup looks hungry; maybe we should call her?"

"No." Ray stepped in before anyone could agree with Hajime's suggestion. He knew they shouldn't even be there in the first place, let alone call her and tell her that they know everything. Ray could sense it- he had that gut feeling that Hajime was up to no good and was trying to get the Blade Breakers on his side. 'Ugh, this isn't about sides!' Ray very well knew that this was more of a rivalry than anything; Hajime versus Kai. He knew that Kai had a much higher chance of being with Hilary than Hajime did, but he had to take into consideration how manipulative and conniving Hajime seemed to be.

"Alright," Hajime smiled at Ray, clearly forcing it, "Then we can try back another time. We can just leave the gifts here and she can see them when she returns home."

Ray gave Hajime a cut-eye as he brushed passed him. He stopped beside Ray and whispered,

"Don't bother. I've got all the cards." He walked off opposite from where they came from. Ray gritted his teeth together and now understood why Kai wanted this kid dead.

Tyson and Max placed her gifts on the doorstep and waved to Pochie as they walked down to the sidewalk where Ray was.

"Man, we came all this way for nothin'," Tyson began to complain, "I had an entire speech prepared in my head to recite to her but she didn't even bother to show up!"

"You can't blame her," continued Kenny, "You can be the big shot as soon as she's back home."

"Yeah Tyson," Max started, "I think we should leave her alone for a bit until she settles down and everything. I can only imagine what she's going through right now..."

Tyson sighed to himself, "Yeah I guess you're right. But that's not fair, Kai gets to be with her and we can't!"

"Kai's an exception," Daichi interrupted with a wink. As dumb as he was, he knew what was going on between Kai and Hilary. Everyone seemed to know that there was a connection and a relationship blooming but Hilary. The girl was as oblivious as someone can get- only good thing about it was that with oblivion comes purity. She was a soft-hearted, loving girl that worked hard for what she wanted. She took good care of the Blade Breakers even when they pissed her off to her limits. Daichi looked down as he began walking back to the dojo,

"I'm really worried about her. I hope she's okay." He stuffed his hands into his pockets and kicked a tiny rock as he continued,

"I just wish there was something I could do for her."

"Yeah, me too," Ray piped in, "Things haven't been going very well for her lately."

"The best we can do is give her our support!" Max was always the positive one-thank goodness for that. He paused and looked back at her house, "When do you think she'll be coming back home? I mean, poor Pochie is trapped there."

"Don't worry Maxie," Ray calmly started, "She shouldn't be more than another day. I'm sure Kai will eventually stroll in to take care of everything." He put his hand on his friends shoulder; he knew how Max felt about Hilary. At first he had a huge crush on her and tried to keep it a secret from everyone...But Ray being as keen as he is figured it all out. Max knew that his feelings would never be returned because she had something special with Kai. He accepted this, though, and being the good friend he is still stood by her side and cared for her. His 'crush' feelings eventually became protective ones as he started to see Hilary more as a little sister. This was hurting him inside knowing how much pain she must be in right now, but he would have to wait it out until she was back in town.

"So who wants pizza?"

* * *

><p>Back in the hospital Hilary had fallen asleep on one of the visitor couches beside her father's bed. After she let out all her tears and was just merely choking on her sobs, Kai carried her out and held her hand until she eventually let sleep take over. Her brother ended up staying over at his friend's house for the night, considering he couldn't handle being in a hospital. The smell of it made him cringe and the current situation at hand wasn't healthy for the young boy. Her mother stayed up all night sitting beside the hospital bed where her father was still sleeping. The two were inseparable as teenagers when they first fell in love and it looked like they would be together 'til the end.<p>

Kai sat on the floor next to the sleeping Hilary. Her grip on his hand was almost bone-crushing, but he ignored the tingly feeling in the tips of his fingers. She didn't sleep as peacefully as she usually did- she would start crying and shaking in the middle of the night, but not wake up from it. This resulted in Kai getting barely any sleep either. He stayed up because he knew how her sleeping pattern was affected when she wasn't settled. He rested his head on the couch beside him and closed his eyes, imagining that he was back at Hilary's house with her and she was happy.

He snapped out of his thoughts when the machine controlling Fumito's heartbeat began beeping at a fast rate. Hilary's mom ran to the door and yelled out,

"Someone please! Something is happening! His heart!"

Kai looked over at Hilary when he felt her grip tighten even harder on his and her eyes fluttered open. Her eyes were all red and puffy-swollen from crying. She began to sit up,

"What's going on?"

Three nurses came barging into the room and pushed the woman aside. One nurse took out syringes and drew out blood from the man's body. Another one began pumping morphine into his body to suppress the pain he was in, while the other whipped out the defibrillator.

Hilary's eyes began to brim with tears once more. Kai sat beside her and pulled her into a quick hug, blocking her view from the event taking place in the room.

"Clear!" She rubbed the pads together and pressed them down on Fumito's body- he convulsed.

"One more, clear!" She did it once more and the beeping on the machine began to slow down to a steady rate.

"Look at these," the one nurse began talking to the other two, "There's white blotches scattered across his brain. What does this mean?"

Before answering, the 'head nurse' turned and looked at the family behind her.

"We'll take this outside. Mrs. Tatibana he is fine now, you did a good thing calling us in here." She handed her a little box with a red button on it, "Just in case it happens again, push that and an emergency team will be right in to help you."

With that she left with the other two discussing the image they saw on the computer screen.

'That didn't sound good.' Kai loosened his hold on Hilary enough that he could look down and see her face. Her cheeks were bright pink but the rest of her was pale as a ghost. He used his index finger to lift up her chin, making her look into his eyes.

"It's okay now, he's fine." She hugged him tight again then got up to stand beside her father. Kai watched as she sadly looked down at the man in front of her; she was slowly breaking apart.

"Hey dad," she began speaking, just above a whisper. Her voice was still shaken and crackling, "You're gonna be alright. We're here with you right now. I promise you everything will be okay. So I hope you don't feel sad right now if you can hear me. We're all worried about you, so please-please wake up daddy."

A tear rolled down her cheek as she leaned over and hugged her father. Kai heard her mother begin to sniffle, trying to hold back tears of her own. She was trying so hard to be strong in front of her daughter- she wanted to prove to not only Hilary, but to herself that she was capable of holding the family together.

"You're crushing me Hilary," came a very low, croaky voice. Hilary's head shot up and stared into the eyes of her father who was now looking back at her.

"D-...Daddy?" More tears filled her eyes as she watched her father force a smile onto his face. She shoved her face into the pillow beside his head and began to cry. Hilary's mother got up and stood beside her, leaning down and kissing her husband.

"We thought we lost you," she forced out.

"Nah... It takes a lot more than that to get me down." His voice was barely a whisper and his throat sounded dry. He coughed a few times and Hilary stood up straight. She looked over at Kai with a heart-warming smile on her face, making him return the same smile. Her mother looked over at Kai, then back to her husband.

"Honey, there's someone you should meet."

Fumito turned his head in Kai's direction, making Kai stand to his feet and walk over to introduce himself. Before he could extend his hand, Hilary spoke,

"Dad, this is Kai Hiwatari. He brought me here the other night." Her father stared Kai down, trying hard to be an intimidating looking dad- but he failed. He sighed and smiled at the boy,

"Well, Kai, I guess I can't be scary to you in this condition."

"No sir, I still find you quite frightening." Fumito smiled and turned to his wife,

"I like this boy." She smiled down to her husband, agreeing that Kai was perfect to have around.

"I'm quite fond of him myself. And I think our Hilary is, as well." She winked over at her now tomato-faced daughter.

"Mooommmm~ quit it! This isn't the time!"

Her parents laughed at her humiliated expression-it was so obvious to them. Fumito decided to save his daughter some dignity and struck up a conversation with the man of topic,

"So Kai, how old are you?" He asked after drinking some water his wife was assisting him with.

"I'm 18, sir."

"Do you have a job?"

"Technically speaking, yes I do. It's more of a profession."

"Oh, your spinning tops game?"

"No, that's more of a hobby. My family owns Hiwatari Corp. and we are currently building a mall here in Bakuten."

The water Fumito was just drinking from a straw ended up being spat out all over his sheets,

"Y-You mean, you're the heir to the Hiwatari fortune?" The man was lucky he was already in a hospital bed just in case he went into shock- or cardiac arrest.

"Yes, my parents left everything to me."

"Wow," Hilary's mother trailed off looking at her daughter, "Hilary you should marry this boy!"

"Yeah Hilly," her father concurred, "He would take great care of you and you never have to worry about finances."

Kai smiled as Hilary began scolding her parents for talking about such things out in public- especially in front of Kai.

"I might just take you up on that offer." Hilary and her parents turned and looked at Kai- her parents were smiled and her mouth dropped open. 'He can't be serious!'

"I'll protect Hilary no matter what may happen in the future, you have my word."

Hilary's mom sweat-dropped; for such an intelligent, smashing young fellow (AN: Lol I had to) he sure was dumb. Of course she wanted him to protect her daughter, but what she really wanted were gorgeous little rich grand babies!

"Well young man, you have a father's approval," Fumito declared whilst giving Kai a thumbs up.

'Good grief.' There's no way this could possibly get any more embarrassing than it already was. Even in his current state her father managed to humiliate her. She smiled and shook it off though- what really mattered was that he was awake now and seemingly alright.

"Why don't you two go get something to eat?" Her mom suggested, "Your father needs some rest- bring me back a coffee, please."

Kai nodded and walked toward Hilary, grabbing her hand. She looked down at her hand and blushed as he pulled her out of the room. He looked back at her father and he smiled at the two walking off; the least he could do was give a good show for the man.

"He's gonna think we're dating, you know!" Hilary stammered, clearly flustered and embarrassed.

"Let him," Kai smiled back at her. She felt butterflies in her tummy and her cheeks began to heat up. Why was he doing this to her? Did he enjoy watching her struggle to keep her composure?

After what felt like walking in circles, they both concluded that it would be best to ask someone where the vending machines were. They approached the reception desk and the woman in the seat had her back turned to them as she twirled her hair. Kai cleared his throat before speaking,

"Excuse me." At the sound of his voice the woman swivelled around and faced them with a scowl on her face-boy did that change when she saw Kai. Her face lit up and she flipped her long dark brown hair over her shoulder. She placed her elbows on the table close together to show off her lack of chest. She blinked her light grey eyes seductively at Kai, trying to catch his attention. Hilary looked at the girl in disgust; she caked makeup on and she had raccoon eyes. She shot Hilary a `bitch look' and spoke up,

"How can I help you?"

Kai, clearly not caring for her sudden slur in words in attempt to lure him in replied, "Where are the vending machines?"

"Down the hall to your right- you can't miss it, gorgeous." She winked at him, causing Hilary to frown. She hated to admit it, but she was a little jealous of this girl.

The hoe continued, "Maybe I'll see you around there later on today? Preferably at 3:30pm?"

Kai grabbed Hilary's hand as he walked off in the direction skank-nasty pointed out. He shouted over his shoulder, "I'd rather not have to see you again."

Hilary turned her head and winked at the bimbo sitting behind the desk. 'Score!'

Kai may be a guy, but he surely wasn't oblivious enough to not notice the jealous vibe coming off of Hilary. He looked down at her beside him and softly said, "Whores aren't really my type. I prefer real over plastic."

She was taken by surprise and honestly had no idea where that was coming from. Hilary looked up into his eyes and smiled; it was all she could do. She was happy whenever she was with Kai- he completed her.

They neared the end of the hall and came to the vending machine stocked with various kinds of candy and chocolate. Hilary's eyes beamed as she stared in at all the goodies- there were so many she couldn't decide!

"What's your favourite?" Without taking her eyes away from the machine she replied,

"Umm… I like all of them!" She grinned up at him with her answer.

"Do you want all of them?"

Hilary blinked a couple times trying to understand what he was talking about; there's no way she could have every candy in there. "No no, they all look so yummy though!"

Without a verbal response, Kai smirked and put his money through the slot. He pressed a bunch of random buttons causing all the candies to fall out of their spots (AN: I don't know what they're called, but they look like coils) half way. He tapped the side of the machine with his fist and they all fell to the bottom. He reached in and grabbed his prizes- he considered everything his prize because he never lost. Ever.

Hilary stared at him blankly, almost anime falling. 'What the hell!'

"K-Kai what are you doing!" He innocently looked at her; he didn't see anything wrong with what he was doing.

"What? You said you wanted them all so now you have them." He handed her the pile and went to grab a bag from inside another room. He stuffed them all inside and smiled as he handed it back to her.

"Umm- Thank you, Kai." She smiled at him. He sure did spoil the hell out of her. Not that she was complaining or anything; she loved the way he was with her.

"Any time, princess." Hilary inwardly smiled, 'Princess…' That's exactly how he treated her- he practically held Hilary up on a pedestal.

"Let's go find some coffee for your mom." He motioned for her to follow as he spun on his heel and advanced toward a coffee stand in the hospital.

They ordered the coffee while earning an awkward look from the cashier as he looked at the bag of candy Hilary was holding. "I'm guessing you robbed a lot of kids for that, huh?" His smile grew bigger when she laughed at his cheesy joke.

Kai, on the other hand, was not so impressed. He rolled his eyes and grabbed Hilary's hand- rudely interfering with their conversation.

"Let's go." The cashier waved them off and shouted out, "Have a good day!"

Kai had to hold back the urge to hold up his middle finger. 'What a loser.'

The two walked back to the room with their goods in silence. Hilary didn't know what Kai's problem was. She had no idea that his inside were boiling with jealousy- which seemed to be happening a lot more often lately.

They reached room 204 and Kai turned the doorknob, moving aside to let Hilary in first. Kai motioned Hilary inside, telling her that he was going to get something for her father- the man deserved a decent meal. Entering, she saw the doctor standing across from her mother who was now sitting on a couch. She was looking through numerous papers; charts, graphs, everything. Hilary approached her mother,

"What's going on?" She faced the doctor as he cleared his throat,

"It seems that the equipment necessary to remove and repair all the damage done to his brain is going to cost a lot more than expected; especially now that we've discovered it's eaten away a large quantity of it."

She was speechless- what could she possibly say to that? She remained quiet, watching the doctor push his glasses up higher on his nose bridge with his index finger. He continued,

"It appears that the particular side of the brain that was destroyed was where his memories were stored. We aren't quite sure how long it will take, but if he does not get the proper treatment soon, he won't remember anything."

She looked down at the bag she was holding, contemplating on whether or not she could ask Kai for some help. 'No! I can't do that- this isn't his problem. I'll have to find a way on my own… the contest!'

"What if we could get enough for all the supplies? Then could you save him?"

"I'm not sure if you'll be able to come up with so much within the time frame he has left."

"Well, how much is it?"

The doctor lifted the notebook he was holding, looking at it intently. "Well if you consider the actual cost of the machinery," he spoke more to himself than replying to Hilary just yet, "And then transferring them over here…" He turned back at her, "You're looking at approximately 3 million."

Hilary's body went limp, '3…million dollars?' There was no way she could get that mass amount of money.

"How much time do we have?"

"Well from looking through all his test results I would say a possible month."

Hilary's mother spoke up from where she was sitting, "There's no way we can ever get that money- it's impossible."

"Well mom we have to try!" She couldn't believe her mother was saying this was impossible. They could at least try, right?

"Honey, it would take me more than 10 years to make that much at work. We can't afford it."

"Well what about your savings? Can't you put that into it?"

"That isn't nearly enough; it's not even half. I have nothing in my personal savings, but in our shared account, your father and I have ten thousand- give or take."

"What about my school money? Will that cover anything?" Hilary could feel the tears forming again.

"We were only able to save five thousand for you, Hilary."

The doctor faced Hilary's mom, thinking of ways that he could help them,

"Well since this is a special care unit, we can provide twenty thousand for the delivery charges."

"Alright so what does that leave us at?" Hilary did the math in her head, using her finger as a 'pencil' to write in the air.

"Only thirty-five thousand dollars…"

"I'll leave you both to discuss the necessary finances- I'm sorry there's nothing more I can do for you." The doctor took his leave. As he opened the door, Kai walked in carrying a box of chicken, home fries (AN: Those little potato things, they're magically delicious!) and tons of vegetables. He shot the doctor a glare- he didn't like this man, let alone trust him.

He made his way over to Hilary and her mother, placing the box down on the couch.

"I couldn't find anything else- hope this will suffice." Akahana faced Kai and smiled,

"Thank you. You didn't have to do this."

Kai shrugged his shoulders, "Least I could do." He turned his head and saw Hilary deep in thought.

Her mind was coming up with various tactics to get the money she needed. 'I could always get a job- yeah! Maybe even two or three jobs. That way I can work overtime and get paid double for both. So I'll need to find really good paying ones… or even the contest. If I win, I can add the prize money- how much was it again? Six-hundred thousand dollars… so add that to our current thirty-five thousand and that leaves us with-'She inwardly sighed to herself, 'six hundred and thirty-five thousand; not even a third of what we need.'

"Hilary," Hilary was brought back to reality when Kai called her name.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think Pochie is doing okay? He's been alone for almost two days now."

Hilary gasped- how could she have forgotten her darling Pochie? "Oh my gosh, and he hasn't had last night's dinner! Or his breakfast this morning- Gah I'm a terrible mother to him!"

She swiftly turned to her mother, "Mom can I-"

"Go ahead, I'll be fine here with your father." Akahana knew her daughter wouldn't have stopped until she agreed with letting her go home. Hilary was stubborn and wouldn't give up on what she wanted. "Just text your brother and let him know that you're going home- he might need a clean change of underwear." Hilary laughed at her mother; Takumi was always the target of their jokes.

"I'll go, too." Oh Kai, what a kind soul. "You'll need a drive there anyway."

"Sounds perfect- take good care of her, Kai. Oh, and Hilary," her mother paused, then exchanged glances between her and Kai, "If you want, you can stay at home and wait for me to come back. The doctor said that dad can come home within the next two days depending on his health."

Hilary beamed at her mother, "That's great! Alright so we'll wait for you at home!"

"We?" Akahana asked sceptically, raising an eyebrow. Hilary's face flushed and she shyly looked down at the ground. "Well, hehe, you see-"

"It's fine, I don't need an explanation- I trust you both. Just behave yourselves, got it?" She shot Kai the 'mom look' before smiling at him. She knew he wouldn't hurt Hilary or anything; she could see how much he cared for her. When he looked at her there was such happiness in his eyes. It was unexplainable, really.

"Call me if anything happens, okay mom?"

"Yes yes, I will. Give Pochie a big hug for me!" Hilary hugged her mom and kissed her on the cheek, agreeing that she'll hug Pochie if she stopped with the teasing.

Hilary turned and began to walk towards the door- having it opened for her by Kai. He followed her out the door after waving goodbye to her parents. Akahana stood beside her husband's bed and held his hand in hers.

"I like that boy, don't you?" She smiled down at him, leaning over and kissing his forehead, "They're a lot like us when we were younger- obliviously, yet inevitably in love."

* * *

><p>(AN: Don't feel like writing their conversation in the car- it was as casual as ever.)<p>

Kai pulled up in front of Hilary's house. He parked the car, took his keys and hopped out. Kai may be a big, bad, tough, scary guy, but to him, chivalry wasn't dead. He told Hilary to stay in her seat until he walked around to her passenger side. She watched as Kai walked across the front of the car and beside her door. Pulling it open, he took her hand and helped her set out and onto the grass. They walked side by side up to the front door and stopped when they saw flowers sitting on the front step.

"What the…" Hilary bent down and picked up the bouquet; it was quite beautiful. She brought the flowers to her face and took a deep breath in, "Ah, they smell delicious! But where did they come from?" There was a little piece of paper with a teddy bear sticker on it holding up a heart. She shrugged her shoulders thinking nothing of it and turned to Kai. He didn't look very happy.

"Oh, what's that?"

"Someone left chocolates, too." He held the heart-shaped box of chocolates in one hand and hid the card that went along with them in the other, stuffing it into his back pocket.

"Well that's strange," she pondered as she fished out her key, "Oh well, more treats for us, right?" She smiled at him before opening her door, only to be greeted by an overly excited Pochie.

Kai walked past her into the house at a brisk pace. He went straight for the kitchen- to be more exact, the garbage. He ripped up the card and tossed it in; it was from Hajime. He didn't bother reading what was inside after he saw how he wrote his name with hearts on the envelope. He tossed the chocolates without care onto the table and made his way back over to Hilary. He'd rather light the box of candy on fire instead of eat them.

"Hello my baby, hello! Were you a good boy while mommy was gone? I'm sorry I took so long, are you hungry? Do you need to potty? Okay, let's go potty! Come on, come get your leash!" Kai watched as Hilary jumped up from the ground where she was petting and cooing her puppy and went to fetch his leash. She latched it onto his collar and turned to Kai,

"Wanna come, too? We're just going up the street and back- he's probably starving."

"No, I'll wait here."

"Okay! Be back soon- be good, Kai." She winked at him and walked out the door. 'Be good?' He smirked and went to the cupboard where they kept all of Pochie's snacks and food. Ever since he began spending every day and night with Hilary, he'd been calling things 'theirs' and 'we' and everything else that implied that things belonged to the two of them. He pulled out Pochie's bowl and filled it to the top with his Puppy Chow; he planned on stuffing the pup until he almost explodes. He grabbed Pochie's water dish and filled it to the brim, 'He's gonna piss all over the floor.' He laughed to himself picturing Hilary going into one of her fits if Pochie did his business all over the house- gross, but funny.

Hilary's blank piece of paper was still sitting on the table where she had left it the other day. He spun it around with his hand so it was facing him vertically and stared down at it. He had a few ideas, but he didn't want to ruin what would be her masterpiece. Maybe she wouldn't mind him helping out a bit- he can't be terrible with poetry, right? He leaned back on the chair as he reached into the drawer for a pen. 'A pink one, really?' And to make everything better, it had a fluffy pom-pom on the top. This definitely distinguished what kind of man Kai really was.

He tapped the pen twice before the words pieced together in his mind. It was quite simple for him; he was easily inspired when he thought of something special to him- something that motivated him. He wrote up to seven lines of words until he heard the front door open and saw Pochie basically fly across the floor from the smell of his food. He dug right into it, spilling half the bowl onto the floor. Hilary followed behind smiling at her puppy, "Isn't he so cute?"

She took her sweater off and hung it on the stair railing. She made her way into the kitchen and dropped into her seat, leaning her head back.

"Man, he made me run all the way to the corner, and then all the way back. Shows how out of shape I am." She sat back up and scooted her chair over to the fridge, pulling out a juice box. Scooting back, she noticed the box of chocolates toppled over, hanging off the edge of the table. She reached over and saved them, opening the box to find all her favourites. She picked up one wrapped in purple foil, unwrapped it and plopped it into her mouth. She pushed the box into Kai's arm,

"Want one? It's really good," she tried to say with her mouth full. Kai looked down at the sweets in disgust and shoved them away,

"I'd rather not."

"Fine by me!" She smiled and placed the chocolates on her lap. She peered over at Kai, clearly curious about what he was doing.

"Whatcha got there?" Kai turned his back to her, hiding what he had written.

"Your song. The sheet looked so naked, I had to clothe it." He handed it over to her, waiting to see what she thought.

Her eyes moved side to side as she read over the words. At first her brow was furrowed as she concentrated on the words, then it softened as she looked up from the sheet.

"Aww Kai it's so cute!" She grinned, "Who did you write it for?"

"You," he replied, then re-thought his choice of words, "Well, it's your song. I wrote the words for you…"

Hilary smiled mischievously at the man sitting in front of her,

"Kaaii~ are you writing about a girl?" she winked.

"No." Hm, well that wasn't the answer she was looking for. She scooted her chair closer to his and she raised her eyebrows up and down,

"I think you like someone!"

"Do you want to use them or not? It's up to you whether or not you want to leave it blank and fail or actually use my work."

That was one way to shut her up. She sat back in her chair and looked deep in thought. 'He has a point- my sheet was so ugly without any words on it. And if I win this contest I can use the money to help cure dad!'

"Alright," she said righteously, pumping her fist into the air and then pointing down at Kai, "You, Kai Hiwatari, will help me write my song!"

"I'm not doing any more." Hilary pouted- he was so mean sometimes.

"Kai please? I really need the help. It's obvious that I have no talent, but you on the other hand- you're a natural!" She figured her best way of getting his help was to boost his confidence and kiss his ass.

"No."

"Come on! I'm letting you stay in my house for free. The least you can do is give me a hand."

"I'm staying here out of my own free will. I can go anytime and be perfectly fine."

Hilary sweat-dropped; he had a pretty good point. He was there out of choice, and he was doing a lot more than his 'least'.

"Okay- that's cool. Not like you're breaking my heart by this anyway." She dramatically smacked her hand to her chest above her heart, "Because, you know, things aren't hard for me as is."

"I'll add on to whatever ideas you get. Otherwise, it's all you." He crossed his arms across his chest and closed his eyes. 'The things this girl makes me do.'

'Hehe- score one for Hilary!'

She flattened out the paper in front of them and pulled her chair right beside his.

"What direction do you want this piece to go? Is there supposed to be a story behind it?"

Hilary pondered to herself, 'A story sounds really creative…' then re-thought it, 'Ah but it'll take too much time.'

I think it should just be right from the heart- by the two of us."

If Kai didn't care about his pride and ego he would have blushed at that. He knew she didn't intend to make it sound the way he took it, but it still made his fingertips tingle.

"I see."

"Well, I don't really know how to explain it," she began, putting one finger up and bringing her face close to his, "I want it to be something special, you know? Something that people can relate to- and since we're writing it together, why don't we both put how we feel into it?"

Now he got it; all she wanted was a simple, heartfelt song that people would both enjoy and be touched by.

"You write the next verse, and then I'll do the one after."

The two worked together on the lyrics for a good hour throwing out ideas, laughing and- of course- making fun of each other every so often. Hilary would write a few words down or explain her ideas to Kai and he would add on to them; occasionally scribbling out her original writing and improving it. After finishing the last line of the piece, Hilary pushed herself away from the table and jumped to her feet.

"We did it! It's finally done, Kai!" She said excitedly, giving him a big hug, "Thank you so much, I couldn't have done it without you."

He got up and playfully pushed her away, "Yeah, I know. I practically walk on water." He walked out of the kitchen and headed for the living room. It was about time for a well-deserved nap.

She grabbed the now empty box that previously held her chocolates and dumped it into the recycling bin. 'Almost forgot.' She pulled out her phone and sent her brother a text:

_Hey dweeb I'm at home right now with Kai. If you need anything let me know._

Within two minutes he replied back to her:

_I don't care what you and your boyfriend are doing at home. Just keep it out of my room. _

Hilary gave a huff, "He is not my boyfriend!"

"Did you say something?" Kai called out from the living room.

"N-no, it's nothing!" She tried to hide the nervousness in her voice. "Why does everything that has to do with him get me so… not myself?"

It was now approximately 4:30pm and her stomach was growling. If she was starving, Kai was bound to be ready to go out hunting.

"Hey Kai," she called to him, "What do you want to eat?"

"Nothing made by you- I'd like to live a little longer." Her eyebrow twitched as she raised her fist in the air wishing Kai was standing in front of her so she had a target to smash it into. Kai emerged from the living room, knowing that Hilary was having a hissy fit. He smiled to himself when he saw her standing there, fury burning in her eyes.

"What do we have?"

"Well your highness," she began, "How does gourmet kraft dinner sound?" She would have slapped her knee laughing at her own choke if she knew she didn't have to explain to Kai that it was a knee slapper.

"Sure, sounds good." He completely ignored her attempt at a joke and leaned against the fridge. 'At least I thought it was funny.'

Kai watched Hilary pull out a pink apron from the drawer next to the fridge.

"Hey Kai, can you help me tie this up?" She turned around and waited for his assistance- and just like the good boy Kai was he tied a bow with the strings to hold up her apron. She skipped off to the cupboards to begin their dinner.

She got out the box of KD and set it on the table. She shuffled over to the cabinet and pulled out a large pot, filling it with water and placing it on the stove. She then walked over to Kai, shoving him out of the way so she could get the margarine and milk to mix in once the noodles were cooked.

'She looks cute like that-wait! What am I thinking? Stop it Hiwatari, Hilary isn't cute.' He had a short argument with himself in his head. Although his ego was telling him one thing, his heart was thinking different. 'Right,' he listened to her begin to hum softly to herself as she mixed the noodles in the pot, 'She's beautiful.'

Hilary herself was having a war silently rage on within her mind. Something was eating away at her but she just couldn't put her finger on it. She couldn't figure out why Kai had such an immense impact on her- maybe it was because she admired him? That could have been true. She always looked up to Kai, even from the beginning. She had such an attachment to him; as if she couldn't be dragged away from him. Why were things so different now though? Alright, she admitted to herself that she had developed feelings for Kai when they first met a couple years ago. And sure those feelings had gotten stronger within the following years- but she saw him as a brother, right? Wrong.

She looked over her shoulder at Kai standing against the fridge inspecting her every move. She was a little offended since he was probably doing it to make sure she didn't poison it or something.

'He's so good looking- everything about him is perfect. His eyes, hair, teeth, smile, skin, body tone- GAH! Quit it!' She shook her head to get those thoughts out. She had to stop thinking of Kai. He was always in her mind; no matter what she thought of, it always led back to him.

'No way.' She opened her mouth slightly when she came to a mental conclusion.

'Am I in love with Kai?'

"Hilary." She avoided his call, too caught up in her thoughts.

"Hilary?" Still nothing.

"HILARY!" She spun around frightened from his shout. In the process she accidently flung a noodle onto Kai's forehead as she whipped the spoon around with her.

"Heh, oops. What is it?"

He wiped the noodle off his face, glaring at her. Before he responded he took a good look at her; something was different. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were glossy. 'Is she going to cry again?'

"Didn't want to intrude on your moment with dinner but uh- the smoke is black."

Hilary turned back around to her pot and shrieked,

"OH MY GOSH! KAI WHAT DO I DO?" Hilary began to panic- this had never happened before. She tried to blow the smoke away and fanned the air with her hands. Kai stood in his same position sweat-dropping at what he was seeing. He strode over and stepped in front of Hilary. He turned the stove off and put the pot in the sink, turning on the water.

"You'd make a terrible wife."

Hilary placed her hands on her hips ready to scold him, "You are the most ungrateful man I have ever known!"

"At least I know how to cook."

The vein in the side of her head began to pulse- was he seriously going to start this right now?

"Why don't we just order in? My treat." There he goes again trying to steal her spotlight. All she wanted to do was make a delicious- and edible- meal for them to both enjoy together. But rather than arguing, Hilary took off her apron and threw it across the back of the chair.

"Fine. What are we having?"

"What do you feel about Chinese?"

"Eh, not feeling it today. How about pizza?"

"That's too common. You like Italian?" Kai inwardly cursed himself, praying she didn't agree to his suggestion. He hated Italian food- not because of the taste, it was fantastic. Just the fact that Hajime was Italian made Kai detest everything about it.

"Nah," Kai breathed out a sigh of relief, "I still vote pizza."

"Really?" Kai couldn't believe it- the girl could have anything she chose but she was sticking with pizza. Did she have no originality?

"Well yeah, then we can eat on the couch and watch a movie. The movie will be my treat." Heh, try and top that Kai. She didn't want him to have all the glory in paying for the meal so she offered to dig into her piggy bank and order a movie off the television.

"My, aren't you a gentleman," Kai said sarcastically. Hilary giggled at Kai's seemingly new-found personality.

Kai called the local pizza place and gave their order. While he was doing that, Hilary was busy flipping through all the movie options she had on her movie box (AN: I'd say a specific company but I don't want to promote or demote anything.).

"Hey Kai, what do you wanna watch?" He followed the sound of her voice into the living room and sat beside her on the couch.

"What are my options?"

"Well," she started, bringing up the genres on screen, "The best ones are horror, sci-fi, action, and romance."

"Definitely not romance." Kai and romance movies? Pft as if- he was a man made of steel. He didn't want to watch a bunch of men crying on television about how they can't get their girlfriends to love them anymore. "How about sci-fi?"

Hilary turned to face Kai, gasping theatrically. "I never knew you were a geek, Kai! My goodness this will be a shocker for the team."

He rolled his eyes- she always had some smartass remark to everything he said and/or did. Kai grabbed the remote from her hand and looked through all the sci-fi movies to see if there was anything decent on.

"I'm not a geek," he commented, "I just know a good movie when I see one."

"Geez, no need to get so offensive, I was kidding… nerd." She giggled to herself when Kai glared at her out of the corner of his eye. That's two more things she learned about him: he liked sci-fi movies and he got offensive if someone bashed one of the things he took interest in.

"Kai, you owe me one more."

He kept his eyes on the screen, still flipping through the movie names, "What are you going on about now?"

"You're supposed to tell me three things about you! So far I've found out two from today- just one more left."

Kai smirked to himself, wondering whether or not he should say it. 'Ah why not.'

"I like you best when you aren't talking."

Hilary's eyes turned to dots; she couldn't believe what she just heard. She didn't know whether she should leap on him and punch the living daylight out of him or be saddened by his words.

"F-fine!" She huffed and folded her arms, "I'm not talking to you for the rest of the night!"

"Fine by me." She turned her head in the opposite direction of him and stuck her nose in the air. There was nothing more amusing than an annoyed Hilary. Nothing.

The doorbell rang, "Hilary, you gonna get that?"

No response. Looks like she was giving him the silent treatment, 'That won't last long.'

He got up and answered the door, only to find a little runt about fifteen years old holding his food out to him.

"Here's your pizza, sir. That'll be $35." He didn't sound like he reached puberty yet- his voice hit an octave even Kai didn't know existed. Kai dug into his pocket and gave the kid $40.

"Keep the change and take a fine lady out on a date," he glanced over at Hilary as the boy followed his eyes, "Preferably one that isn't like mine."

From the couch Hilary shot a glare at Kai and turned her head away from him, making him smirk.

"She sure is pretty." The kid couldn't take his eyes off of Hilary- well, the back of her head. Kai looked down at the kid and kicked shut the door in his face. 'Little bastard.'

He walked over with the large pizza box in one hand and a bottle of Coke in the other. "I'm guessing you won't be joining me for dinner?" Hilary kept her eyes away from Kai, still staring up at the ceiling.

He opened the box and took in a deep breath of the freshly cooked pizza, "Mmm mm mm," he teased, causing Hilary to look over, "You can enjoy your wall over there, don't mind me."

A small pout formed on her lips as she watched Kai take a bite of the first slice. It was topped with every vegetable you could think of and looked absolutely mouth-watering. Her pout grew larger when she got a good whiff of the pizza.

"Would you like some?" She nodded her head, her eyes not leaving his slice.

"Are you going to speak to me?" Hilary reached over Kai to grab the box, only to have it pulled away from her. She scowled at him- why was he being so mean? Hilary muttered under her breath.

"What was that? I can't hear you over my chewing- speak up."

This time she spoke through her teeth, just a little louder, "CanIhaveaslicenow?"

"Hilary speak up, I'm getting older I can't hear yo-"

"GIVE ME SOME I'M STARVING!" With that she reached back over and pulled the box onto her lap, ripping off the biggest slice available. Before biting into it she glared over at Kai's smirking face.

"I hate you."

Kai picked up the remote in his empty hand and smiled into the pizza as he took a bite. He decided on a werewolf movie- not too scary, not too lame for Miss. Princess over there. He glanced over at Hilary as she quietly ate her pizza, smiling happily to herself. He never knew someone could get so excited over food. The movie shortly began after he finished his third slice. It began with a man walking in the woods and suddenly being grabbed by some dark figure. He was dragged off into the night and was screaming at the top of his lungs. Hilary didn't do well with scary movies, even if she knew they weren't real in any way, shape, or form. After every scary scene she ended up inches closer to Kai, trying to hide behind his arm. A face covered in blood appeared on the screen out of nowhere, making Hilary almost jump out of her skin. She shrieked and pulled Kai's arm in front of her face. He wrapped his arm protectively around her waist and pulled her in close.

"You're such a baby."

"B-but look a-AHH!" The face appeared again, this time morphing into a beast and ripping the head off of a woman. This was all too much for her- she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

She spent the rest of the movie hiding behind Kai as he laughed at the people being slaughtered. There was something seriously wrong with him. As the movie ended he shook Hilary gently with his free hand.

"Hilary, it's over. Get up." She hesitantly sat up from her spot where she was curled into Kai. She had somewhat been dreading the end of the movie- now she had to be all alone… by herself… until the morning.

"It's time for bed, you have to get up early tomorrow and rehearse your song."

"No! I mean, no, it's okay. I'll have lots of time to practice it before the performance." Translation: Don't leave me alone, a werewolf is going to eat me.

"No excuses, let's go." He took her by the hand and tried to pull her to her feet. She used all her weight to keep herself on the couch. There's no way she was going to go up there by herself.

"Hilary seriously, come on."

"I-I'm just worried about how you'll feel, Kai. I mean you seemed pretty scared of that movie. Heheh-heh." Kai rolled his eyes, he knew what she was getting at.

"You're ready to piss your pants, aren't you?"

"When you word it like that, no. But technically yes…" She looked down and pointed her index fingers together in embarrassment.

"You should have told me it was too scary."

"I thought you were smart enough to figure it out on your own as soon as I hid behind you screaming!"

"What then, Hilary- what do you expect me to do?"

The only alternative that came to mind was that he would have to spend the night with her; either in her bed or they would stay downstairs on the couch together. The couch was a decent size but it certainly wasn't big enough for them to sleep side by side.

"Come on, I'll bring you upstairs."

"But Kaaaiiii~!" Hilary whined, "I don't wanna be alone!"

"I'll stay up there with you until you fall asleep."

Kai lead the way as he walked up stairs with Hilary. Pochie darted up the stairs running past Kai and waiting for them at the top of the stairs with his tail wagging. Hilary stayed as close to Kai as possible as she walked up the stairs- she had that nervous feeling everyone gets when they feel like something is going to grab onto them from nowhere. They reached the top and she anxiously ran into her room after Pochie and jumped onto her bed. Kai smiled at her, 'What an idiot.' He stepped into the room, shutting the door behind him.

"Aren't you going to change?" Hilary looked down at her attire and shook her head.

"You'll be more comfortable in your pyjamas."

"No, no, no!" She laid down and lifted the covers up and over her body. Kai made his way over to her bed and sat on the end of it, leaning over with his hands folded in front of him. He watched as Pochie walked in circles by his feet before getting comfortable and laying down. He felt kind of bad for keeping the movie on without realizing Hilary was terrified of it. He couldn't lie that he found it kind of cute- she was just like a child.

Moments of silence passed and he figured she had fallen asleep. He stood up and turned to face the door.

"Kai!" Hilary shot up out of bed, "Where are you going?" He pulled his hand away from the doorknob and brought himself to the side of her bed,

"I thought you were sleeping."

She grabbed onto his sleeve with one hand and without making eye contact with him, she spoke,

"Please don't leave me by myself. Stay with me."

He blinked at her and sighed- he had no other choice unless he wanted to stay up all night and try to engage her in conversation.

Kai picked up a folded blanket that was lying at the foot of her bed and opened it out. He flattened it out onto the floor beside her bed and grabbed himself an extra pillow out of her closet. He laid down on his make-shift bed,

"I'll be here when you wake up. Goodnight Hilary."

Hilary smiled to herself and followed suit, her body facing where Kai was. "Thank you." And she fell asleep.

* * *

><p>In the middle of the night Kai awoke to a pain in his side. He felt some kind of pressure but didn't quite know what it was. He rolled over to find himself face to face with Hilary- who happened to be sound asleep. She was curled up in a ball with her knee pressing into his back. He pulled himself away from her cautiously, trying not to wake her up. She looked so peaceful; her long black eyelashes brushing against her soft cheeks, and her chocolate brown hair tousled from rolling around in her sleep. She felt the cold against her body and didn't like it compared to the warmth she felt before. She moved in closer to Kai, wrapping her arms around his arm and pulling her body closer into him.<p>

He smiled at her- even in her sleep she was adorable. He pulled the blanket up above her shoulders and wrapped his arm around her tiny frame. Kissing her forehead he whispered,

"See you in the morning."

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

There were so many moments where I wanted to just leave things on a cliff hanger but I managed to keep myself from doing so. It is not 2:01am for me and MAN am I beat -_-

So I hope this chapter was decent enough and all my readers are satisfied with both the content and the length of it. I found it to be a little slow because there were more sappy moments between the two than any other conflict (minus her dad's situation).

I'm not sure when I'll be updating again considering that exams are coming up very soon- so I'm hoping I'll be able to manage writing the next chapter piece by piece every day that I can!

I would like to thank all my reviewers for the support- it truly inspires me to write more!

'Til next time.

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	8. Dedicate

Ahaha so as I read over my previous chapter I couldn't help but laugh at the silly mistakes I made. My goodness, they were brutal. So I would like to fix a few of them in this blurb.

Tyson did not "jump to his face" lmao, he jumped to his "feet".

I meant "it is NOW" so and so time and I'm exhausted. Stating that I was exhausted is excuse- and reason- enough for why my grammar was just disgraceful.

I believe I forgot to put beginning quotes when Hilary told Kai… lemme find it….

"I think it should just be right from the heart- by the two of us."

That's about all I found for now, if there are any more careless mistakes please feel free to correct me. So embarrassing…

I just finished watching a fantastic Harry Potter marathon and ahh- just inspiring. It saddens me that the series is over, though :(

Enough nonsense- on with the fic!

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

Ps. I'm thinking I'll base this chapter mostly on Kai rather than Hilary, just to switch things up a bit. He needs a chance in the spotlight sometimes, too, right? Right.

Chapter 8:

* * *

><p>The snow began to fall softly from the sky, adding to the white blanket of snow that stretched across the fields. The wind was still- completing the silence filling the area. Kai walked across the snow covered field, his feet crunching with every step. He wore a long black jacket and left his hood down, resulting in snowflakes sticking to his hair. He walked passed a large tree covered in snow- eventually a pile of the substance slipping on and falling in a heap to the ground. He didn't know where he was headed, but he knew that he needed to keep moving forward- he had a feeling something was waiting for him. Up ahead stood a striking deer, pausing in its prance to watch Kai approach it. The deer, as cute as it was, had some sort of edge to it- something wasn't right. It dashed off when Kai reached a foot distance from the deer, 'What a strange creature.'<p>

He continued his journey; although at this point he couldn't tell if he was walking in a straight path or if he had turned. The snow became thicker and much deeper. He trudged through the snow until he came across a small mound to the right of him. He cautiously walked over to the small hill-like figure- he realized it was pink as he got closer. His pace drastically slowed down as he heard a faint noise coming from the object; they almost sounded like a mix of mumbles and sniffles. He extended his hand to touch whatever it was in front of him when they spun around. The shadow of their hood covered their face so he couldn't see anything. Tears trickled down the persons face and their bottom lip was quivering. Kai figured that they were cold so he offered his jacket, only to have it pushed aside.

"I don't need your sympathy." The sound of their voice left a familiar feeling in Kai- he felt his fingertips begin to tingle and a rush of warmth engulfed his entire body. His heart began to beat rapidly and he felt light-headed. He reached out once more to touch the cheek of the person. They pulled back and the wind picked up speed- it was blowing out of control. Snow was being lifted from the ground and swirling around Kai and the person in front of him. He shielded his eyes with his left arm and tried to keep his balance. The person reached their tiny hands up and pulled their hood down, revealing chocolate brown hair being tousled by the sudden change in wind pattern. They opened their eyes to meet Kai's- he stared into remarkable ruby eyes, he had never seen someone so beautiful. He knew it was a girl because no man looked as fragile and delicate as this person did. She brought her hands to her face, her eyes widening and the tears began to fall even more intensely. She was shaking uncontrollably and looked back up at Kai with a weak smile.

The wind suddenly stopped, making Kai almost topple over. He stood straight and stared into her eyes once more- she looked mortified. He looked down at her shaking hands and his eyes widened like hers did. They were covered in blood. An explosion emerged in the distance, sending a gust of hot air towards them. The explosion became closer and Kai squinted trying to look by the brilliant white light that slowly neared them. He saw a car totalled and several limbs sticking out of the windows of the car. As soon as his eyes adapted to the light the image vanished and they were standing alone in a field filled with flowers- the sun was shining and the breeze was blowing softly. The girl removed her jacket entirely; she wore a soft pink spaghetti strap dress and white sandals. Her hair blew in sequence with the wind and she looked back over at him; her tears had vanished and her skin was glowing with the sun.

"It's all gone now, thank yo-" Her eyes widened and she dropped to the ground. Behind her stood a boy slightly shorter than Kai with midnight black hair and hazel eyes. Kai yelled out at the scene in front of him- why did this guy do that to her?

"I told you she's mine. 'Til death do we part." Kai's body filled with anger and he charged toward the boy. Inches away from him, the boy's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell on top of the girl lying on the ground.

Kai's eye shot open and he was breathing heavily. He stared up at the ceiling above him and his eyes scanned the area. 'It was only a dream.' He turned his face back in front of him to find Hilary snuggled up into his body- her arms and legs were entwined with his. He still had his arm wrapped around her waist, his chin resting on top of her head. 'What the hell was that all about?' He pulled Hilary in closer. After his dream he felt like he needed to be even closer to her than ever. It was giving Kai a bad feeling, as if it were preparing him for something. He closed his eyes and reflected on what it could have meant or implied. There's no chance Hilary's hands would ever be covered in blood- she wasn't the bad ass type that enjoyed going out and slaughtering. He chuckled at the thought of Hilary being one of those psychotic chainsaw-swinging murderers laughing hysterically on top of a hill. 'It was probably just 'cause of the movie last night.' Great, not only did Kai have to ease Hilary's mind but now he had to comfort himself.

Kai wanted to kick himself for it, but he had to get up. He didn't want to move from where he was laying with her- this was everything he secretly wanted. Hilary filled up every vacant spot in his life with her smiles, laughter, her hugs… Having her around was like breathing fresh air- everything about Hilary was so calming to him and he often found himself getting lost in her (AN: Tsk tsk, dirty minds!).

He loosened his arms from his grip around her and slowly lifted her leg off of his. He carefully slithered away from her hold and got to his feet. He put his finger to his lips shushing Pochie. He smiled down at Hilary still sleeping peacefully. He fixed the blankets and stroked her hair. His heart yearned for her- much like his lips did. He bit his bottom lip trying to resist the urge of crashing his lips down on hers. He didn't know how she would react and he wasn't one to accept rejection very well. Instead, he kissed her forehead and stood back up. He tapped the side of his leg twice and whispered down to Pochie,

"Come on." The pup happily trotted out of the room following Kai as he shut the door. Kai quietly stepped down the stairs, careful not to step on any creaky ones. He managed to make it to the main floor without making any obscene noises. He picked up Pochie's leash from the bottom step and attached it to his collar. He punched in the alarm code and stepped outside into the sun. The wind felt a lot colder these past few days. Pochie hopped down the front steps and continued his way up the street, his bum wiggling back and forth with every step he took. They walked up to the end of the street where Pochie took his piddle and kicked grass back at it before pulling Kai back to the house. They were a house away from Hilary's when a silver car pulled up into the driveway. Kai kept walking- whoever it was wasn't going to be staying very long with him around. To his surprise, Hilary's mom stepped out of the driver's side and smiled at Kai, waving him over,

"Good afternoon, Kai!" He smiled back at the woman, happy to see she seemed to be back to normal.

"Could you give me a hand?" Kai nodded his head. He jogged Pochie back up the stairs and shoved his bum into the door. He sat there wagging his tailing as he watched Kai's retreating back.

Kai jumped down all four steps and landed without a sound at the bottom. Making his way over to Akahana, he saw her husband sitting in the front seat smile at him. Kai opened up the passenger door and was greeted with a flick on the forehead,

"That's just in case anything happened. Next time it'll be the whole fist." The two exchanged smiles, showing they understood one another.

"Let me help you," Kai offered Fumito while he hoisted him up with his arm. Kai wrapped his arm under Fumito's and supported him with his body. The trunk of the car was shut and Akahana wheeled out a wheelchair for her husband to sit in.

"Honey, you're degrading me," Fumito said to his wife with a pout.

"It's for your own good. Kai can you sit him in here, please?"

Kai assisted Fumito with sitting in his wheelchair and helped make him comfortable. Kai shifted his eyes to the stairs trying to figure out how they were going to lift him up them. Kai was a strong man and all, but he didn't want to slip up and hurt Fumito.

"Don't worry Kai," Fumito started, "The hospital was surprisingly nice enough to give me a portable ramp." He rolled his eyes and made finger quotes as he mentioned how it was portable. Kai gave a chuckle- there's no mistaken that this man really was Hilary's father. They both had the same qualities and were over-confident in themselves.

Akahana pulled out the ramp from underneath Fumito's cushioned seat, smiling at her husband's face when she unfolded it. "And here's the beauty!" Yup, definitely Hilary's mother. They shared the same personality- sarcastic but caring all in one. The relationship between the married couple in front of him reflected that of a teenaged pair. They teased one another and had playful arguments; it was nice.

"Alright Kai, let's put your muscles to the test," challenged Hilary's father. "Think you can push this bulldog of a man up that?" He quirked an eyebrow at Kai and had a sly smile on his face, clearly not knowing the true strength that Kai had in him.

"I dunno, sir. I'll try my best," he smiled down at the man as he took his place behind the wheelchair. He held onto the handles and began to move it forward with much ease. Walking up the ramp was a breeze- it was nothing compared to the workouts Kai had been doing in the gym a month ago.

Akahana giggled as she watched her husband hang his head in shame; he was defeated. She followed behind the two, picking up the ramp. She moved past them and held the door for them to enter.

"You're losing your touch, sweetie."

Fumito, once again, rolled his eyes at his wife- her remarks were becoming more penetrating as they aged.

"Thanks kiddo, I can take it from here." Fumito placed his hands on the bars attached to the wheels on either side of him, prepared to take control of his new ride (AN: No offense; I had to). Much to his dismay, it didn't budge.

"Sir I don't think you should strain yourself- you just got out of the hospital." As much as Fumito wanted to claim he was quite capable of managing on his own, he had to agree with the young man. He was in rough shape and couldn't risk making things any worse.

"Hey Kai did you feed Poch-" Hilary came calling out from upstairs and made her way down to where they were. Her words were cut short when she saw her father sitting in clear view just a few steps away from her. "DAD!" She practically flew down the stairs and hugged her dad so tight he could barely breathe.

Kai stood beside Fumito watching their father-daughter moment; it was really something. He didn't really know or understand what a real connection with family was. He smiled as he watched Hilary's smile grow bigger and bigger- she looked much different than she had in the hospital. She was now full of life and, most importantly, happiness. She moved back and faced her father,

"You're finally home! How are you feeling? Woah… dad you're in a wheelchair- you can't walk anymore? That's okay we can install an elevator or something for the stairs and-"

Her parents both laughed at her enthusiasm- it was nice seeing their daughter back to her old chatty self.

"I'm fine Hilary- the doctor wanted me to sit in this to preserve my energy. They unfortunately don't believe in your old man." He made a sulking face, earning a giggle from his little girl. She didn't care about how humiliated and belittled he felt. She was so happy to finally see her dad at home.

"So you two," her mother shifted her eyes back and forth between Kai and Hilary, "What did you do yesterday?"

The father look was quite evident on Fumito's face- Hilary was going to have to be careful when wording her answer.

"We ordered pizza and watched a move," Kai spoke for her- phew! What a life saver. "Hilary got scared of it so I sat with her until she fell asleep." Good job Kai, weave those words of yours!

Hilary thanked the heaven's above that Kai was so good with his words. If he had changed even one syllable in any word he said, her father would have thought something went down between them. Instead, her father smiled at Kai, then at his daughter,

"Happy to hear you took care of her. You know, when Hilary was younger whenever she watched a scary movie she would sleep in our bed for weeks!"

Hilary put her hand on her forehead in shame, "Daaaddd~ stop it."

"Well he needs to know in case it happens again."

"It won't happen again, sir," he turned to look at Hilary, "After seeing how scared she was, I wouldn't make the same mistake again."

Kai really did feel bad for making Hilary watch such a scary movie with him. Well, scary to her at least. He felt like he was kissing her dad's ass by saying it, but he was only saying what came to mind- and it was the truth.

Hilary's dad smiled to his wife and winked at Hilary signalling "he's a keeper"!

"Dad I think you should lie down and rest a bit." Akahana nodded in agreement,

"Yeah honey, you just got out of the hospital. You should have a nap- at least an hour."

Fumito looked over at Kai, his eyes begging for him to disagree and save him from the clutches of his wife and daughter. Kai looked at him sympathetically, smiling and shaking his head.

"Sorry sir, but I agree with them. You should take it easy."

Fumito frowned at Kai and muttered, "I'm having second thoughts about you." Akahana went behind the wheelchair and pushed it as close to the couch as she could get it. Kai assisted her in lifting him out of the chair and placing him on the couch. Hilary walked up to the couch and leaned over her father kissing his forehead,

"Night dad- love you." He smiled at his daughter while giving her an askant look. "Love you, too, Hillybear."

"Hilary, why don't you and Kai go grab some hot chocolate? The new shop just opened up the street and I hear it's pretty good." Akahana had to think of a way to get those two out of the house- it was awkward enough for Hilary that Kai was actually having a conversation with her parents.

"I wouldn't mind it," Kai looked down at Hilary, "You up for it?" Hilary sighed; of course he would agree to it.

"Alright, alright. Let's go." She went to walk out the door until Kai called for her. "You're forgetting something," he held up her jacket, "it's getting cold- you'll get sick."

"But Kai it's fine I don't ne-"

"I don't want to listen to you complain when you get sick. Put it on." He held her jacket behind her and helped put her arms through. Kai looked behind him as he heard Akahana giggling to herself. He turned away and smiled at Hilary as she awkwardly adjusted her jacket and walked out the door.

Hilary walked with a skip in her step and swung her arms back and forth as she advanced down the street. Kai walked beside her with his hands in his pockets and staring straight ahead. He would occasionally glance over at Hilary to see what she was doing; she'd start singing, talking to herself, or even start drawing in the air. Kai already knew she was a bit of a nut so it was nothing new or shocking to him when she did something strange- it just made her who she was.

"Hey Kai," she held her hands behind her back as she continued walking forward, peering over at him as she spoke, "What kind of phone do you have?"

"Uh," he was taken back with her sudden question- 'Where the hell did that come from?'

"It's just an iPhone." She beamed up at him and held her hands together.

"Wow~ that's so cool! Can I see it?" He reached deep into his pocket and pulled it out, handing it to her cautiously.

"Don't drop it. I don't plan on getting another any time soon." Hilary rolled her eyes- typical guy thinking she'll break his precious baby.

"Yeah, yeah. Do you have any games on here?" She played around and touched every icon on the screen. She sweat-dropped when she came across the 'fruit ninja' application,

"Really, Kai? You're a ninja now?"

"Don't knock it 'til you've tried it."

"Like you've knocked every girl I bet," she muttered under her breath so Kai wouldn't hear her. For some reason when he gave his answer she felt jealous and began thinking of Kai and how many girlfriends he must have had. 'I mean come on, the guy's gorgeous- a total knock out. He's the whole package and plus some.' She inwardly sighed trying to forget about the image of Kai being with other girls.

"What was that?" He was now facing her raising his eyebrow.

"N-nothing!" She said grinning up at him then looking back down at the phone. She pressed the fruit ninja icon and began slicing and dicing the fruits. She couldn't believe how much fun it was- it was honestly addicting.

They continued their walk filled with Hilary shouting at the fruits and cursing the bombs if she sliced one. Kai smiled to himself as he heard her begin cursing the game and threatening to smash it to the ground.

'Moron.'

They finally made it to the store-it was just across the street. They stood side by side waiting for the light to turn green and they proceeded to the small white building. They passed a car that was waiting for the lights blasting their music. The driver honked at Hilary and the guy beside him shouted that she was 'sexy'. Kai was instantly filled with anger as he glared daggers at the idiots in the car. He put his arm around her waist as they reached the sidewalk. Hilary looked up from her game, completely oblivious to what was going on. She pouted,

"I lost."

He lifted his hand from around her and ruffled her hair, "Better luck next time."

He walked ahead of her at a fast pace and pulled onto the door. He held it open allowing her to enter first as he followed closely behind. He had to admit the place was pretty decent for just being a small building. There were large windows along every wall- minus where the cashier was- with dark drapes hanging from them. The tables and chairs were a dark oak, matching the cream coloured floor. There were maybe five people sitting in the chairs and there weren't many people waiting in line, 'Thank god.'

The two walked further into the store and stood behind one construction worker ordering up his drink. Hilary grabbed onto Kai's hand, bringing it up and placing his phone in it.

"I'm just not cut out for one of these," she smiled sweetly. If Kai was a typical pansy-like man his heart would have, dare he say it, melted. He returned the smile- his eyes softening as he gazed into hers. When he was with her it was like they were the only two in the room, no matter where they were. The cashier cleared her throat interrupting their moment,

"Can I take your order?" She half smiled at the blushing couple in front of her- yes. Kai was crimson. Not making eye contact he placed his order,

"Two large hot chocolates," he kept his head slightly down and shifted his eyes to Hilary, "What do you want?"

"U-umm can I have one medium hot chocolate, please?" Kai looked up at the cashier and corrected Hilary,

"Make that a large."

"But I wanted a medium!"

"Too bad, you're getting a large."

"But I won't drink the whole thing- hey! Why are you placing my order?"

"Because yours was wrong."

"What I want isn't wrong!" She was now facing him with her tiny hands balled into fists holding them close to her sides as she argued back and forth with Kai.

"My apologies- it's severely incorrect."

"You can't make my decisions!"

"Under the jurisdiction of Kai, yes I can."

"My goodness you two argue like a married couple," smiled the cashier as she was entertained by their bickering. In unison they both shouted,

"We do not!"

After being escorted to one of the tale sets by a waiter, Kai and Hilary sat together waiting for their drinks. Hilary had her arms folded, one leg crossed over the other and was looking out the window puffing out her cheeks. Kai was in a similar position except his legs were placed flat on the ground parted from each other. He sighed to himself, 'Me and Hilary together, huh?' She was always running through his mind and he couldn't get her out- not that he necessarily wanted her out, he just felt a little creepy. He turned to the girl across from him and remembered her mumbling something before they got to the shop. He had somewhat picked up on what she said but couldn't interpret what she meant by it.

"Hilary," she ignored him. "Hilary," he said in a more stern voice, still being ignored as a smile formed on her face.

"Hilary."

"What?" she demanded. Kai growled- she really was a pain in the ass.

"I want to ask you about earlier."

"Oh how we're suddenly engaged?" she smiled at him mockingly in attempt to tease him but ended up blushing herself.

Kai rolled his eyes, "No, asides from that. You said something to me under your breath."

"I called you stupid." Now his eyebrow was twitching.

"No. I mean as we were walking here."

He watched as the blush on her cheeks darkened- 'Jackpot.' He continued,

"What were you saying?"

"Nothing," she said in a hushed tone, looking away from him and to the floor. Kai smirked to himself, now completely sure of himself.

"I might as well let you know the first thing about me for the day," he started. Hilary's eyes moved back to him as he began to speak, feeling relieved that he was changing the subject.

He leaned forward onto the table and Hilary followed suit. He leaned close enough so their noses were almost touching, her eyes blinking with curiosity.

"I'm a virgin." Almost like a thermometer shooting sky high from fever, Hilary's face flushed a deep red and she pulled back into her chair. Kai leaned back in his chair chuckling at her reaction. 'Is it really that surprising?'

"K-Kai why would you tell me that?" Hilary stammered, looking down at her lap and her hands resting on the thighs.

Kai shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know. It was something new and I figured you'd want me to clarify that I don't 'knock' anything."

The cashier stood beside Kai and placed their order down on the table. "That'll be $10 please." Kai reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet and handing the girl the money. He stood up with a smile on his face and lifted their drinks.

"Let's go."

Hilary's expression was indefinable- it was a mix of "Oh my gosh he heard me"+ "Why is he telling me all this?" and just plain embarrassment. She stood up avoiding eye contact with him and strode out the door.

He wasn't getting the satisfaction of seeing her tomato face.

* * *

><p>They arrived home to be greeted with Hilary's mother snatching the drinks without a hello.<p>

"Well hi to you, too, mom." Hilary rolled her eyes- of course her mom was more interested in her drink than her daughter. Akahana winked at Hilary, taking a sip of her hot chocolate.

"Oh my gosh, this is delicious!" She drank it as fast as she could without burning her tongue.

Kai walked passed Hilary and took a seat at the kitchen table along with the overjoyed Akahana. He picked up his cup and handed the other to Hilary. Her cheeks were still tinged a faint pink and she thanked him for the drink. She took her first sip and it was as if she were in heaven. She beamed up at Kai,

"It's actually so yummy! Hurry up and drink yours before I take it!" He lifted the paper cup to his lips, taking a small sip. The sip soon turned to a gulp as he was overwhelmed with the delicious sensation of the drink. He couldn't believe how remarkably sweet it was- just perfect.

So Kai," Akahana started, "Where will you be going to school next year? Have you decided what you want to do with your life?"

Kai pondered this- he never really thought about it. He was so caught up in his blading and managing the family company that he had no time to think long and hard about his future.

"Mom, that's so rude!"

"Well I'm just making conversation with him, Hilary. Besides, what does it matter what I ask him? He already has my approval, as well as your father's, so he has nothing to worry about."

Kai watched as Hilary scolded her mother for saying those kinds of things in front of him. In all honesty, he could care less. He didn't mind being asked things, he just didn't answer most of the time.

"I'm actually not too sure," he interrupted, making them both look in his direction. He took a sip of his hot chocolate and placed it down on the table before continuing, "I've never had a chance to think about what I wanted to do in my future."

"Do you eventually want to get married?" Akahana questioned, receiving a glare from Hilary.

Kai chuckled, "Eventually, maybe." He saw Hilary staring at him as he replied- almost as if she was shocked he was actually piecing more than a few words together in a sentence.

"Hear that, Hilary?" Akahana smiled and slapped her daughter's back, "There's hope for you yet!"

Hilary lifted her fist prepared to begin another argument with her mother when they heard screaming coming from the living room. The three got up to their feet (AN: or face, as I said in my last chapter lol…smh) and darted into the room. Hilary's dad was sitting up on the couch shouting babbles across the room, pointing at the wall. Akahana ran over to her husband's side trying to calm him down, but to no prevail. The shouts continued as she rubbed his back in attempt to soothe him. Hilary was next to rush over to her father's side, only to have him push her away.

"Who are you?" he shouted at Hilary.

"D-dad, it's me, Hilary. What's wrong?" She reached out to touch his arm and he smacked it away.

"Get away from me! Why are you in my house?"

Hilary took a step back away from her father, covering her gasping mouth with her hands. 'He doesn't know who I am.'

"Sir, she's your daughter." Kai spoke with uncertainty, not knowing if he should get involved with her family matters.

"Who are you to tell me who this is?" Fumito faced Kai and spoke with his teeth clenched.

"Sir you need to calm down."

"Kai get him his medicine please-it's in the top cupboard by the sink."

He ran into the kitchen and grabbed a small box of pills, bringing it back to Akahana. She opened the lid and shook out three green pills.

"Get that shit away from me!" He pushed his wife to the ground, "What the hell do you people want?"

She sat back up with tears in her eyes, closing the lid and moving toward her husband again.

"I said get away!" He slapped her in the face.

"Dad, stop it! Why are you doing this?" He snapped his head toward Hilary,

"Shut up, bitch!"

Kai had to hold back his anger and control himself so he didn't attack the man. "Don't talk to her like that."

Kai reached down to Akahana and took the pills from her, moving closer to Fumito who was now standing. He was a little wobbly from the sickness and was somewhat swaying.

"Why are you defending this girl? She's just a piece of-" and Kai tackled him to the couch.

Kai was struggling to keep Fumito's hands away from him as he tried to put the pills in his mouth. He was swearing at Kai and flailing his arms around.

Hilary got to her feet and went to hold his mouth open so Kai could shove the medicine inside. After about five minutes, he managed to get the pills down Fumitos' throat and the man slumped into the couch, closing his eyes. Hilary ran to get some water to make sure her father's throat wasn't dry and Kai laid him back down on the couch.

"What the hell just happened?"

* * *

><p>(AN: I should be mean and end it here… but I won't :))<p>

Hilary and Kai had spent the next few hours up in her room watching some movies. Kai didn't know what he could say to take her mind off of everything that had happened, so he thought it would be a good idea to try and distract her. They were watching Twilight: Eclipse- Kai's absolutely favourite. Not. He was sitting against her bed half falling asleep as the movie carried on. Hilary, on the other hand, was so into it and leaning forward toward the television screen.

"Is it almost over?" Kai groaned.

"Shh!" Hilary shushed him as one of her favourite parts came on- which all consisted of Jacob, the werewolf. In the movie, he took his shirt off and was carrying stupid (aka: Bella) through the forest to test if Edward, the vampire, could sense her. Kai looked over at Hilary and she was basically drooling.

'What's so great about this fag? He has a pig nose and looks shorter than Hilary.'

His jealousy was slowly creeping up with him. He wished she had picked a better movie, preferably one that didn't have a bunch of 'hot' guys taking their clothes off in it. Kai rolled his eyes, 'What a waste of budget making this shit movie.'

"Kai, look!" It was now time for the werewolves to fight the vampires and Hilary squealed as Jacob showed up on the field.

"Hn."

He hated this movie. He hated 'Jacob'. He hated the guy that played Jacob. He hated how Hilary loved this loser.

"I don't see what's so great about him."

Without taking her eyes off the screen she replied, "Oh I don't care for the guy- I just get goose bumps when he transforms into the werewolf! It's so cool!"

Well that was somewhat of a relief- although now his competition wasn't even a human.

Kai's phone began to ring, 'Oh thank f-'

"Hello?"

"Hey Kai!" It was Tyson, "What are you guys doing?"

"Watching a movie." Kai wasn't in the least interested in what he was saying.

"What do you want?"

"Well, we were all going to check out the studio that the contest is gonna be at. Wanna join?"

Kai looked beside him at Hilary gawking at the television. "Absolutely."

"Great! Meet at my place in ten minutes!" And he hung up.

"Who was it?" She was looking away from the movie now that Jacob wasn't making an appearance anymore.

"Tyson, he wants us over at the dojo in ten."

"Oh, how come?"

Not sure, wasn't really paying attention." He smirked at her, knowing that she was thinking how typical that was of him.

"Well alright! I'm tired of this movie anyway." Kai rolled his eyes- 'Yeah 'cause Jacob's gone.'

She turned off the television and stood to her feet, followed by Kai. Walking back downstairs they saw her dad sitting on the couch with a bottle of alcohol in his hand. Her mother was sitting in the kitchen on the phone with the doctor discussing the event that took place earlier that day.

"Dad! What are you doing?" Hilary ran over, trying to take the bottle out of his hands.

"Leave me, Hilary." Her father looked down at the bottle in his hands, seeming to remember his daughter again. "I'm so sorry about what happened earlier."

"It's fine dad, just please don't drink that. It'll make things worse."

"It's working damn well right now." He took another swig from the bottle, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Hilary come on, let's leave him." As much as Kai wanted to stop her father, there was nothing he could do. The man clearly wouldn't listen to her, so there's no chance he would cooperate with Kai. Fumito looked up at Kai, then his daughter, and at Kai once more.

"Take care of her." Kai nodded, pulling Hilary along with his hand on her waist.

They walked outside into a gust of cold wind. Kai popped the collar of his jacket to keep his neck warm- it was unusually cold today. He wanted to hold her hand and walk side by side as they usually did, but she was distancing herself. They walked in silence to the dojo; the only sound around them was the wind. The reached Tyson's and knocked on the front door, waiting for him to answer.

Kai growled as a familiar face opened the door that wasn't Tyson's.

"Hey Hilary, happy you showed up" smiled Hajime. Hilary gave a small smile as he moved aside to let her in. He turned back and smiled at Kai, "Happy you came too." It was more sarcastic than anything.

"Hn." Kai nudged Hajime's shoulder as he entered the house after Hilary. He didn't see why Hajime had to be there. Sure it was his group's contest but 'Who gives a damn?'

Kai entered Tyson's living room and saw everyone sitting around the floor with sheets out in front of them. Hilary was sitting next to Tyson- when she saw Kai enter the room she patted on the floor beside her for him to sit.

"Alright everyone," came Hajime's voice as he entered back into the living room, "Hilary and Kai, these are forms you need to fill out before you enter the contest. In order to get past the main door you need to have these filled in a long with a hard copy of your song."

Kai picked up the sheets on the floor in front of him and scanned through all the information that needed to be provided.

"It's quite simple, really." Hajime smirked at Kai, earning him a death glare.

"So when will the contest take place?"

"Well Max, it was supposed to be tomorrow but we're still prepping everything for the contestants so it will be held in two days."

"Thank god we get more time," Kenny sighed, "I don't even have more than six lines!"

Hajime laughed at Kenny, having a feeling that he wouldn't really make it too far in the contest- maybe just pass round one.

Everyone got started in filling their forms. Kai read over each question and raised an eyebrow; they were sure asking for a lot. 'It's like they want to stalk me.'

'Name- Kai Hiwatari… Age- 18… Date of birth- November 18th… Place of birth- Russia… Siblings- None… Phone number… Guardian name? Health card number? Social insurance number? Favourite colour- what the hell?'

"I don't really think answering all of these is necessary, Hajime." Hilary said exactly what Kai was thinking- although he cringed when she said that dreadful name.

Hajime walked to the other side of Hilary and sat down, laughing, "I know, I know. It's a lot for you to fill out and a lot of the questions are rather… odd. Just answer everything with a red star beside it- you should be fine."

She nodded and filled out all the mandatory information. "Hey Hilary," Hajime spoke again, "Why didn't you come to my show the other night?"

She lifted her head from her writing and shifted her eyes to Hajime's, "I'm sorry, I didn't really have time to go. I'll go to the next one- promise." She forced a smile on her face which didn't go unnoticed by the eavesdropping Kai. He didn't understand why she pretended to be happy when she really wasn't. He didn't see the point in hiding how you truly feel.

"You have to pinkie-swear on it!" Hajime held out his pinkie finger, grinning. She took his pinkie in hers and they shook on it, "Promise."

If Kai had a weak stomach he would have thrown up- how pathetic could this twerp get? He finished writing everything he had to and shoved his papers in Hajime's face. Hajime shot him a dirty look before grabbing the forms out of Kai's hands. Ray was next to finish his; then Tyson, Max, and Kenny after him. Hilary was the last one still writing out the name of her song. She had no idea what to call it, and it wasn't fair if she named it on her own when Kai helped her write it. Right?

"Hey Kai, what should we call the song?" He looked at her as she tapped the pencil on her cheek, waiting for an answer. "Call it whatever you want, it's your song."

"But we wrote it together- it has to be appealing to both of us."

"I don't know. Uh… How about 'Dedicate'?" Hilary smiled and gave him a thumbs up, "It's perfect!" She quickly jotted it down, stacking her papers evenly and handed it to Hajime who was now standing. He took them from her,

"You two wrote a song together? Great, can't wait to hear it." The sarcasm dripping from his words was so intense- it made Kai feel like he was king of the world. He smirked triumphantly,

'Take that you scrawny little bastard.'

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

I feel bad because I was planning on continuing on from there but… nah! There will be tons more drama going on in the next chapter, as well as a special appearance. Geez, I make it sound like a television show lol.

Thanks again to my reviewers for the support and great feedback! Kai and Hilary will eventually get their kiss in- patience! Hmm… I always forget what I want to say when I write my ending blurb. Oh well :)

Chapter 9 should be done within a week at most; I've already started it :D

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	9. Strawberry

Just finished baking some cookies and studying for exam numero uno- figure it's about time to begin chapter 9. I don't really have much of a blurb today, sorry. Next time I'll be sure to fill up half the page with my nonsense ;)

Before I begin, I would like thank all my reviewers once more! Thank you for your insane amount of support and encouragement- as well as positive feedback!

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

* * *

><p>Chapter 9:<p>

The team arrived in front of a massive white building with wide windows across every floor. The building was about 20 stories tall and there was a banner across the top saying "Contest Two Days Away!" It was on the end of the same street as the restaurant Kai took Hilary to.

"Wow!" Tyson exclaimed, fascinated by the building, "It looks sick!"

"Wait until you see the inside," Hajime smirked as he opened the front doors. As soon as they stepped in there were guards lined along the walls to the next set of doors.

"Oh yeah, so much better," said Daichi, putting his hands behind his head, "It's just a bunch of ugly bald guys!" In unison all the 'ugly bald guys' turned their heads and scowled at Daichi, making him cower behind Hilary.

Tyson laughed at monkey boy and cockily smiling, "You're so dumb, Daichi. That's not how you deal with people." He began to march his way passed the guards until one of the stuck their arm out holding him back.

"We need to see identity." Tyson blinked.

"Uh… Like a driver's license?" The guard sweat-dropped- as well as everyone else.

"Here," Hajime handed the guards their forms they had filled out, "They're with me- it's safe to let them in."

The guard nodded, approving of the papers he held as he handed them back to Hajime, "You may enter, sir." The group walked in- Daichi pushing Hilary ahead of him as he looked back at the now scary bald guys.

Hajime pushed open the second set of doors and all their mouths dropped; excluding Kai, of course. They entered a large, rusty coloured room with very high ceilings. The walls were lined with golden records in glass cases and pictures of the artist above them. The group walked straight ahead to a large white desk with a young man sitting behind it.

"Alright guys," Hajime started, "You have to go sign in over there. I'll be setting up with my band behind the left stage over there." He pointed to the other side of the room- which was a hell of a long ways away. He smiled at Hilary before waving the Blade Breakers off as he headed towards the stage. In his leave, everyone did as they were told and signed in at the desk. Hilary was last to sign her name since Daichi pushed her out of the way saying 'beautiful people go before hags'.

As she signed her name, the boy behind the desk was staring at her. She awkwardly handed him back the pen, clearly taking in how he was burning holes into her with his eyes. When they made eye contact he smiled and blushed at her, "W-well miss, would you like a tour of the place?"

Hilary looked at him and smiled, "Well I don't really think there's much to show me."

"But this is just the first floor- you can go up to the top and see the recording studio!"

She held up hair hands waving them, this guy really didn't get the hint. "No, no, it's fine, really. I'm more comfortable staying here with my friends!"

"But-"

"She said she's not interested." Hilary looked up as an arm wrapped around her face and saw Kai standing above her, glaring at the boy. The boy nervously laughed as Kai spun Hilary around and walked off with her, not breaking contact.

"Gee, these people in here are way too friendly if you ask me." Hilary attempted to strike up a conversation with Kai but he didn't want to talk about it- or that freak in particular. On a jealousy scale of 1-10, he was reaching a solid 3.

"So Kai, what will you be singing?" Attempt number two. This time he looked down at her,

"It's a secret."

"But Kai!" Hilary whined while puffing her cheeks out of dissatisfaction with his reply. "Why can't you tell me?"

"I told you, it's a secret."

"Secrets don't make friends y'know!"

"I don't need friends." Kai smiled as she folded her arms and shuffled away from him. She always took everything so direct; it was always one or the other with Hilary, no in between.

A bright blue sign on a small cart caught his attention as he walked with Hilary. "If I tell you, will you be me one?" He pointed straight ahead at the cart,

"What, an ice cream?" She didn't think he was a frozen treat kind of guy.

"Strawberry is my favourite." Hilary's mind went wild with "aww's" as he said it. 'Strawberry, really? He is just too cute.'

"Deal."

"Alright," he began once more, stopping a few steps away from the cart, "It's called- now don't hate…"

"I won't!" She smiled up at him, excited to know his song.

"You Already Know What You Are."

Hilary paused for a moment, 'What's so bad with that?' "Kai there's nothing wrong with it- oh! Why don't you sing it to me?"

"No." Hell no- there's no way he would ever sing it, especially in front of her. "Ice cream. Now." He turned her so she was facing the cart and pushed her along. After being forced over to the treats, she cleared her throat before placing her order.

"Umm, excuse me?" A young man with crimson red hair and bright turquoise eyes turned around, looking Hilary up and down. He was drying his hands as he faced her, "Hello young lady, what can I get for you?" He asked sweetly. A little too sweet in Kai's opinion.

"One strawberry ice cream please!"

"Comin' right up." He winked at her, driving Kai mad. What was with all these guys today- what the hell were they all doing here? 'And why are they hitting on her? Do they not see me with her?'

Hilary was as oblivious as ever as she stood there smiling as she waited for Kai's ice cream. Kai, on the other hand, had to keep himself from jumping over the table and slamming that guy's head against the freezer. The boy turned back around with a grin on his face as he handed Hilary the ice cream. She was about to stick her hand in her pocket when he stopped her,

"Don't worry, miss. It's on me." He winked. Jealousy level: 6. Kai grabbed the ice cream before Hilary could- as well as grabbed her hand- and stomped away. He couldn't believe how ignorant that bastard was. Said bastard called out, "Well now it's $2.50!"

He brought Hilary to where the chairs were set out in front of one of the stages. He had no idea which one they were at, but what he did know was that it wasn't where Hajime was.

"Quit dragging me around all the time!" Hilary was stretching out her arm Kai was just tugging at while she complained, "You're gonna rip my arm out of its socket!"

It wasn't his fault she was too innocent to notice all the pig-headed creeps around her. There's no way Kai would ever let another guy get too close to Hilary; especially if they reeked of hormones. All he wanted to do was keep her safe from all the rats in the world. In Kai's mind, he was the only non-rat in the entire universe and was the only one that could get close to Hilary. He had become so possessive of her- in a protective sort of way.

"Sorry." He shoved the ice cream in front of her face, making her look at his questioningly.

"What- you don't like it?"

Kai lightly shook his head, "You try it first." This made Hilary raise her eyebrow.

"Aren't you afraid of my 'cooties'? Won't I contaminate your precious snack, oh great one?"

There she goes again with the sarcasm nice and ripe in her voice. He couldn't deny that he loved it.

"Just take a bite." He scooted himself closer to her and held it to her mouth so she could have a taste. She leaned into the ice cream, licked it and took a small bite. Her eyes moved up to meet Kai's and he swore he could almost see a twinkle in them. Her smile grew bigger by the second as she took another- unsuspected- bite. Kai pulled it away from her before she could take a third,

"Nuh-uh. I said only one." He licked his ice cream and watched her pout and move a few chairs away from him. He looked at her mockingly as he took another bite. Just as her smile once did, her pout grew bigger and more profound. He smiled at her while rolling his eyes as he got up and sat beside her. He extended the ice cream to her, "It's yours."

Hilary squinted her eyes at Kai; she knew he was up to something. He tilted her head slightly when she made no move for it, "Do you not want it?"

She snatched the cone out of his hands and protected it by turning her shoulder to him. She wasn't going to let him have it back.

"Yo Kai! Hilary!" Tyson and Max came running towards them with bags of popcorn, "The stuff here is so cheap! It's great!"

"Since when did you become stingy?" Kai raised his eyebrow at the boys in front of him with their arms full of snack bags. Tyson laughed sheepishly with his stupid grin on his face.

"We figured we'd stock up while we could! Winter's close y'know, gotta load of for the hibernation."

"Exactly!" Max agreed, trying to speak with a lollipop in his mouth. Hilary sighed to herself; 'These guys are too much.'

"So what have you guys been up to?" Tyson asked the duo as he placed his snacks in one chair and sat down in the one beside it.

"Nothing." Kai was back to his one worded replies. He preferred spending time with Hilary than with the two pigs that just showed up. He was fed up with them as is; at least Hilary always kept him interested and he couldn't get enough of her.

"Oh yeah!" Max exclaimed as, he too, put his candies on a seat but remained standing. He pointed behind him with his thumb at the ice cream shop,

"That freak over there wants to know your name. Apparently you ripped him off."

Kai chuckled and glared over at the boy standing at the cart with his arms folded and glaring right back. Jealousy level kicked down a notch to 2.

"Too bad." Hilary took another bite into the ice cream- it was actually really good. She turned to Kai, "I've never had strawberry before. I've always been strictly chocolate."

Kai focused his attention back on Hilary and looked somewhat shocked- yes, world. Kai was genuinely shocked. "Liar."

"No, no, really! This is my first time and it's really good," she smiled and looked down at the cone she was holding in both her hands, "It's probably my new favourite." Kai smiled back to her, completely ignoring the existence of his two friends.

"Guys let's go!" Ray called out to them from the opposite side of the room, "We're going up to the performance stage!"

'Great.' Kai mumbled to himself as he got to his feet and followed Hilary out of the aisle of chairs. They followed out to Ray was standing and continued their way into another room. The room was bare- just a plain white room with an escalator.

"This way." They followed Ray up and walked off into what appeared to be a lounge. The lights were dim and the walls were dark blue. More records were along these walls- minus the fact that these ones were platinum. 'Wow,' Hilary thought as she looked up and around at all of them. There had to be at least one hundred scattered around the room. Ray brought them into a smaller room made of glass- but could still fit them all in and then some. There was a large keyboard set out as well as a wall length black table full of knobs and buttons. (AN: No clue what it's called, sorry.)

The part they had entered with all the gizmos was cut off from a larger room- also made of glass- where there were instruments and multiple microphones set up. There were two bean-bag chairs in either corner of the room and a few black chairs along the walls. A man swivelled around in his chair at the sudden intrusion and stood to his feet holding his arms out.

"Ah, you must be Hajime's friends! Glad you could come." He hugged the Blade Breakers one by one and kissed both sides of their faces. A young boy that was standing next to the man introduced himself to the Blade Breakers as Kyle- he was the 'mixer'. He certainly wasn't as lively as the other man.

"Well youngsters, what do you think of my studio?" The first man held out his left arm and made a rainbow shape in the air for them to all "ooh" and "aww" his pride and glory.

"This is all yours?" Tyson choked out as his eyes loomed around the place in amazement. The man laughed to himself in confidence, here it comes…

"Absolutely! I worked long and hard for the last twenty-five years of my life and I finally made it! See, when I was your age I dreamed to become an artist but my mother always said 'no Fidel, you won't get anywhere in life if you do that!' So what did I do, you ask? I proved that old bitch wrong! Ahaha!" He put his hands on his hips, raised his head in the air and laughed loudly. The group all sweat-dropped at this over-confident man. At least he had spunk.

"Is this where the contest will be held?" Hilary asked as she took one finally bite of the ice cream.

"No way little lady, it'll be on the first floor where all the stages were. We're going to circulate each stage in sections, one by one, while all you young talents perform."

"So then your attention won't be focused just on the person performing?" questioned Daichi in his obnoxious tone.

"Hah, that's exactly what young Hajime asked me in Italy! Like I said, one by one, kiddo. There will be 50 talents at each of the four stages and each will take place on different days."

They all nodded, understanding what he meant. Alright, well that wasn't so bad. Hilary couldn't stop herself before she blurted out her next question,

"How did Hajime become a part of NP anyways?" Kai's jealousy level: 8.

The man looked at her and grinned before he began his exaggerated story, "We were recording their last music video when we decided to celebrate with some drinks." He winked as he said the last word, "We went to a bar and it happened to be karaoke night. We watched all the amateurs sing and- let me tell ya- it was dreadful! That is, until young Hajime took the stage. Man, he just blew us all away. We agreed that we needed him to come back with us to Japan but we didn't know how he would respond to it. We offered him the position but he wasn't sure about the whole thing- he was scared that people wouldn't like him and would focus on the other talents. So long story short we convinced him to come with us!"

At this point, Kai was half asleep. He couldn't care less about anything that had to do with the sneaky little runt.

"Wow, so he's a natural, huh?" That earned Ray a death glare from Kai.

"Absolutely! I believe he's rehearsing downstairs right now as we speak so if you hurry, you can watch the show!"

"Great! Thanks, sir!" Tyson smiled as he ran off ahead of everyone so he could find the best seats. He whipped out his camcorder, 'Time to make some pre-released cash!' Oh Tyson- nobody understood how his feeble mind truly worked. He was going to get caught for trying to scam the group by previewing their rehearsal to the world.

The rest of the team thanked the man for his kindness before taking off after Tyson.

They piled onto the escalator once more and made their way downstairs and over to the centre of the main floor. The lights were shut off and floor lights burst to life along the sides of the walls and the stage.

"This is so cool!" Tyson shrieked- much like a girl, might I add- and ran over to the lit up stage. He sat directly in front of it and precisely in the centre. Max was next to run off after his friend, followed by Daichi, Kenny, Ray and, lastly, Kai and Hilary. Everyone from Max to Ray sat with Tyson up front, but as Hilary went to slide herself into a seat Kai stopped her and pulled her back a few seats behind the team. She gazed up at him questioningly as he tugged her forearm, "Where are we going?"

"They're loud and obnoxious. I'd rather not sit with them." He didn't turn to look at her in order to hide the light blush across his cheeks and nose. She followed him to their seats and flopped into hers.

Four rows in front of them Ray turned around to look at the two with a smile on his face. "Hey guys what are you doing all the way back there? The show's up here, you know." Damn that Ray- he just had to say something. Hilary smiled back at him, "Kai doesn't wanna be up there. It's too noisy!"

Tyson sheepishly turned in his seat to look back at them. He spoke quietly to Ray, "Since when does sourpuss want company when he wants to play the lone wolf?"

"Yeah!" Called Daichi from the other side of Ray, "That's so not fair. Maybe I wanted Hilary to be up here with us!" Ray and Tyson turned in sequence and smirked evilly at monkey boy.

"Do you like Hilary?" Tyson asked with an evil aura emitting from around him. Daichi backed up with his pink cheeks and looked down at his hands.

"I-I do not! I just like her being around more than you guys!" Tyson and Ray looked at each other with their evil grins then back at Daichi. Before they could say anything else to the poor kid, a big stage light turned on and the band members began to emerge from behind the stage.

"So cool!" Tyson had out his camcorder and was ready to film. Max and Kenny sat quietly in their seats smiling, anticipating the show. Ray was still glancing over at Daichi smiling, then back at Kai and Hilary to see what they were up to. Speaking of the two, it was like looking at a bright, beautiful sunshine and a dark, ominous cloud making its way closer. Hilary was so excited and anxious for the show to start, whereas Kai seemed as if he would rather be boiling his face in acid at this point. He had his eyes closed and arms folded over his chest- oh was the excitement in his face ever evident. Not.

Hajime finally stepped out to join his band members and dang did he look good. Hilary tried to hide her awe-stricken expression but that was near impossible. He looked so different than he usually did- his green eyes were sparkling with the lights, his dark hair was tousled in that perfect kind of way, his teeth were gleaming and white as snow, and his outfit- man it did him justice. He wore dark jeans paired up with white shoes. On top, he wore a dress shirt that was light green- further bringing out the colour of his eyes- and a black sweater on top. (AN: I don't know why but I was giggling to myself as I described this part hehe)

He looked over in Hilary's direction and gave her a big smile, showing off his beautiful teeth. She felt her cheeks heat up and smiled back at him. Kai… not so smiley. He was glaring at the rock star with such hatred it could set the place afire. He hated the way Hilary was looking at Hajime right now and he didn't have her undivided attention. 'I hate you.'

"Alright guys!" Hajime spoke into the microphone, looking out at the Blade Breakers. More people from the building had crowded around and took the seats amongst the group so they could listen, too. "I'm a little rusty so go easy on me!" The girls in the crowd were screaming and yelling out to him as he finished talking.

One dark haired girl yelled out, "You're so sexy!" While another called to him, "Come to my place after this!"

'These girls are unbelievable,' Hilary thought to herself. She was right- what girl in their right mind would throw themselves out to a guy they didn't even know just because of his looks and talent? It's not like they knew him like she did or anything. 'Have some decency.'

"Sorry ladies, no can do." Hajime smirked as he answered his crazy fans and looked back at Hilary, "I already have someone special."

Jealousy scale: 12 out of 10.

Hajime turned back to his band members, "Let's go."

The drummer hit his sticks together signalling for the song to begin. Hajime looked down at his feet before he lifted his head up to the microphone. The man beside him playing guitar was the throat of the band (AN: Kind of like a screamer… I didn't want Hajime to scream because he's just too cute to be a beast lol)

_We're finally alone at last__  
><em>_Oh how I've waited for this day to come__  
><em>_There's just something about you that rubs me wrong__  
><em>_You're not worth my attention__  
><em>_I built this with my own two hands__  
><em>_If you could spare me the time__  
><em>_Stop using me as your next misconception_

Hajime took in a deep breath and he began to sing the chorus, smiling out to Hilary with every note.

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

The throat began again as Hajime paused to let him take over. Not a second did his eyes leave Hilary's- he was just gone in them.

_It won't be long before you meet your end__  
><em>_You're nothing more than a passing trend__  
><em>_So keep those cameras rolling__  
><em>_You think I wouldn't remember?__  
><em>_You thought that I would lose faith in myself__  
><em>_You can spare me the lies__  
><em>_You don't believe in me__  
><em>_Your life's a contradiction_

Tyson was bobbing his head along to the music while he was recording- his little film was definitely going to be a mess. Max was throwing his fist in the air enjoying every second of the song, as well as Kenny. Ray was smiling and slowly catching onto the chorus as he tried to sing alone. He looked behind him while smiling to see Hilary enjoying it and singing along. Then he turned to Kai and his smile vanished. Kai was not happy and anyone with eyes would be able to see that from a mile away. He had a murderous look on his face and was staring up at the singer in disgust. Hajime took in another deep breath.

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

_We draw the line at being in your life__  
><em>_Here's to the man of the hour__  
><em>_We'll cast out problems aside__  
><em>_Cheers to your future, may they bury you alive_

_Move!_

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

_I don't believe that everything__  
><em>_you've known about me is gone forever__  
><em>_And I won't forget the days__  
><em>_that we spent forever, it haunts me_

As Hajime let out his final note, the crowd jumped to their feet clapping and cheering. The girls were, obviously, going insane like usual and even the guys were all pumped up and shouting out at the band. Hajime was still looking at Hilary as he held his microphone in the air, holding it up as he breathed heavily trying to slow down his heart rate. Hilary was on her feet clapping and shouting out to them just like everyone else with a huge smile on her face. It was awesome, she was so impressed! She had no idea that Hajime was so talented- not once did she think he would have this kind of talent when they were kids. She smiled and looked down at Kai who was still sitting and frowning to himself.

"Wasn't that great, Kai?"

"Hn." Although it was a rude response, it was better than what he really wanted to say- I hate everything about this bleeping guy and his bleeping stupid bleeping hair and ugly bleeping clothes. This low-life, talentless bleep of a bleeping bleep bleep bleep… You get the point.

"Sing another!" A fan-girl shouted out to him. "Please, please, please!" Trailed on another. Hajime brought the microphone back to his mouth and they could hear him breathing- one girl almost fainted and was telling her friends how sexy he was when he finished his piece.

"Not today. But save your excitement for two days from now 'cause we'll be performing again for you all!" Once again, everyone went wild. Tyson was still up ahead recording everything while he cheered and shouted out to his new friend. He turned his camera around to face him and spoke to it, "How sick was that?"

The crowd eventually diminished and the Blade Breakers were the only ones remaining in the room with the band. Tyson still had his camera on and followed Hajime around asking him questions as he was trying to clean up the stage.

"That was so cool!" Max pumped up his fist as he started talking to his friends, "Man, what a rush!"

"Yeah tell me about it that was amazing!" Ray grinned and laughed with his friends as they talked about the performance they just watched.

Hilary smiled at Kai, "Let's go see the guys now!" She got up and tried to grab onto his hand only to have him pull it away from her. She took a step back from the rejection and didn't know why he was mad at her. "I-I'm sorry, I won't touch you again."

Kai got to his feet, opening his eyes telling her to lead the way. He followed her out of their row and made their way to the rest of the team. Hilary walked ahead of Kai looking blankly ahead of her- what did she do wrong? Maybe he just didn't like when people suddenly grabbed on to him and stuff. 'But that look…' Kai wasn't mad at Hilary, he could never be. His jealousy and possessiveness of Hilary got the best of him and he was just preventing himself from lashing out at her. The only problem was that he couldn't tell her- he was afraid she wouldn't accept the way he felt. Yep, that's right, Kai was afraid.

"Hey Hil!" Tyson shouted to her from the stage, zooming in on her with his camera, "What did you think of that song?"

She smiled at her friend and waved into the camera, "It was really something else!" She kept her smile on her face and moved her eyes to meet Hajime's, "You're so talented, I'm a little jealous."

Jealousy scale: Through the roof.

Hajime smiled for two reasons: one being that Hilary had just complimented him and actually loved the show, and the second being the look on Kai's face after she said it. Kai was livid and Hajime was loving every second of it. "Good I'm glad you liked it. No need to be jealous, Hilly. You're amazing, yourself."

Hilary lightly blushed at the compliment and thanked him. He seemed so different lately- he was actually being a lot nicer, but she felt there was something more to it. She shook it off figuring it was just his change in heart.

"I'll have to catch up with you guys later," Hajime flashed his smile back into the camera, "Let me just finish up over here and I'll meet you out in the lobby." He walked back stage with the other members of his band and the overly-happy man from earlier.

The group made their way out into the lobby to wait for Hajime to finish up what he was doing. Tyson, still recording, was doing close-ups of all his teammates faces- excluding Kai. "Oh man, I can't get that song out of my head!"

"Yeah tell me about it," Daichi agreed, "I need to learn how to sing now!"

"Yeah same, if we want to win the contest we have to try and be as good as he is!" Kenny agreed.

Kai rolled his eyes. 'Nothing great about that pest.'

"So what would you use the money for, Ray?" Tyson zoomed the camera in close to his friends face awaiting his reply.

"I think I would invite you all to my home in China" He smiled. "Boriiinnnngggggg-" Ray's vein was pulsing on top of his head anime-style as Tyson shifted his attention to Max.

"And you, Maxwell?"

"Tyson that's not even my name. I don't know, though! Maybe visit my mom and have a huge buffet!"

Tyson laughed as his mouth began to water, "That's more like it!" He turned the camera to Kenny, but as his friend opened his mouth to speak, "Next!" Tyson moved away and went over to Hilary.

"So Hilary, what would you do with the money?"

Hilary smiled sweetly into the camera, "I'm going to use it for my family." Tyson nodded, moving the camera up and down with him as he did so.

"I see, I see. For your dad, right?" Kai's head snapped up and he looked at Tyson. 'What did he just say?'

"W-what?"

"Yeah Hilary, we heard your dad isn't doing too well so are you gonna use it to help him out?" Daichi finished.

Hilary's eyes filled with tears and she twisted her body around to look at Kai. "You told them?" She felt so betrayed- she trusted Kai not to say anything to anyone, but he let her down.

"I didn't tell anyone." His arms unfolded as he tried to reason with her. He shot a look up at Ray, figuring he was the one that did it.

"I trusted you Kai! How could you do this?" Tears began to fall softly down her cheeks as she stared up at him in disbelief.

"Hilary I-"

"I can't believe you, Kai," her voice softened and she tightened her hands into fists, "Don't bother coming back to my house. Ever." And she walked off in the direction of the front doors.

"Hilary, wait!" Kai called out to her but she didn't turn around. The rest of the team stood in silence as they watched Hilary storm off and Kai stand there helplessly. He turned to Ray,

"I told you to keep it to yourself." Ray held his hands out in front of him in defense,

"Kai I swear I didn't say anything! Hajime showed up and suddenly knew everything about it- I figured she told him!"

Kai growled and gritted his teeth as Ray said his name. It's that bastard's fault that this happened.

As Hilary was just reaching the doors, someone stood in front of her and began to speak, "Where are you off to in such a hurry, Hilly?"

She slowly looked up at him, "Hajime let me go, I'm going home."

From behind the team a voice called out to them as it came running towards them, "Hey guys, sorry it took so long! I had a lot to do and-"

The team all turned around, including Hilary, to find Hajime frozen in his spot as he stood beside them. Everyone looked back in front of Hilary at the man with his hands on her shoulders. He had the same dark hair as Hajime except a little longer, and the exact same bright green eyes. He wore black jeans and a blue pull-over sweater.

Hilary's eyes widened at the sight in front of her. Hajime stood staring at the mirror image of himself with his mouth open. The Blade Breakers all stared in shock at the scene before them.

Before Hilary could muster out anything, Hajime spoke first in a hushed, shaky tone,

"Minori…"

Tyson's camera hit the floor.

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Woo, what a twist! I've been waiting so long to write this part hehe. So hopefully you all enjoyed that and are gaping at the cliffhanger in front of you :)

The songs I used today were both by the same group- which happen to be my favourite. I know many people don't like the same genre of music, so if you want you can imagine it a different way than the way it's actually sung.

You Already Know What You Are – A Day To Remember

Welcome To The Family – A Day To Remember

Ah, so happy to have this finished! Hopefully this story is picking up at a good place- I think it is… then again, it's me writing it. If you have any requests or suggestions, feel free to let me know.

I look forward to your reviews!

Ps. Look me up on youtube and watch my pathetic little attempt to make my first-ever KaiHil slideshow! My name on there is the same as this one; radixVIRO.

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	10. Unbreakable

Here comes the big double digit chapter! So the last one was a little intense at the end with the whole "oh my god there's Minori and he looks like Hajime and he's so cool and blah". Yep, sounds about right. So here's a recap of what's happened:

Hilary's dad has cancer and is slowly losing his memory. If Hilary isn't able to make up 3 million dollars then there's no way of saving him. Her plan was to enter Hajime's singing contest that has a grand prize of $600 000 and a chance to tour with them (even though she could care less about the second part). Hajime is a little sneak and he overheard Ray talking to Kai on the phone about Hilary's dad's situation. He told the Blade Breakers about it without Hilary knowing and now Hilary thinks that Kai did it. She's pissed. She goes to storm off after she finds out everyone knows about her family problems but is stopped in her tracks by none other than Minori- Hajime's twin that left Italy for some reason (even I don't really know why yet).

I would also like to point out to Moonlight Serenity that there is NOO way I'll ever get sick of your reviews- I honestly love them! Thank you so much for your input, it means a lot. And Minori was the one holding onto Hilary's shoulders. Hajime was the one that came out running. Sorry it was confusing! I had struggles trying to find the best wording for it to make sense.. oops hehe. Also, thank you for your feedback on my video, it means a lot! That's amazing! It must feel nice having enough talent that someone wants to draw out your story. I can remember idk how long ago, probably years, I would read your stories over and over, now here you are commenting on my chapters and it's just amazing. Thanks so much :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

* * *

><p>Chapter 10:<p>

"Minori…" Hajime's mouth hung open along with everyone else in the room. Even Kai, the emotionless ice block was gasping and wide-eyed. This was Minori… the twin of the person Kai hated the most. He was standing right I front of them; more directly in front of Hilary. This was the same Minori that had fallen in love with Hilary.

Hilary's tear stained face stared up at the man in front of her in utter shock. She didn't know what to say, do, or even feel. She hadn't seen him since they were little. Since Gorou died. He had certainly changed since then, especially height wise. He was a good foot and a half taller than Hilary so he was towering above her, smiling down at her with that cocky look he had since they were kids. It was the first time she had ever mistaken the twins for each other. He had become so handsome- he looked much more mature than Hajime did, that's for sure. The only difference between them would have to be the scar beginning above his eyebrow and at the top of his eyelid.

"Hajime? Please- I deserve more respect than that." His attitude certainly was the same. He never came off to be the timid or shy type of person; he had always been a leader. His eyes panned around at the astounded faces surrounding him with a smirk. He saw a cat, a chicken, four-eyes, a monkey, a punk, a clone, and… Kai. He couldn't really have a critical name for Kai just yet; he didn't look like the type to be easily figured out. One thing Minori knew was that he didn't look very happy. 'Looks like a peacock.'

"W-what are you doing here?" A soft voice under his chin spoke up and he looked back down at Hilary. Her ruby eyes were as beautiful as he remembered. Her flawless skin was glowing like it was kissed by the sun, and her voice was as angelic as ever. He pulled her into a hug and rested his chin on top of her head.

"I'm sorry, Hilly."

She didn't make a move to hug him back or accept his embrace like he had hoped she would. Instead, she stood there with her arms down to her sides- he figured she was still in shock from his sudden appearance. He let go and looked into her eyes, seeing she was deep in thought.

"You didn't answer my question."

Minori chuckled to himself, 'Still stubborn as ever.'

"I missed home." He looked over at his brother who was still paralyzed in place, looking like he was going to burst into tears. "I was gone for a long time and I needed to be back home. I drove by our old neighbourhood and to come and see you both." He looked back at Hilary and smiled softly. He returned his gaze to his brother, "Hajime, I hear you've made something of your life. I'm proud of you."

Hajime's legs kicked into action and he ran over to his brother and tackled him, smothering him in a hug. "Brother!" He began to quietly cry during his reunion with his twin- he missed his other half like nobody could ever imagine. Not having him while he grew up was tremendously difficult and he needed Minori there to hold his hand. He needed a piece of him to comfort him when he was sad, hug him when he was happy, and smile when he was laughing. He had lost both his parents, and he thought his brother, as well.

Hilary stepped back so the two could share their family moment. She smiled happily at the two in front of her. 'Just like when we were little.' She remembered back when they were small and running around the house playing tag- when they weren't supposed to be. Hajime tripped over a toy and fell on the floor, scraping his knee on a snag in the tile. She remembered him crying for Minori to come and take care of it, and Minori being the caring brother he was, he bandaged it up and would baby his brother to no end. He picked him up and carried him to the couch making a big deal of the whole situation- not that he thought a scrape was enough to cause a big fuss, but it was enough to make Hajime happy and calm him down.

"Quit being such a baby. It's time to grow up, Hajime." Minori had also always been pretty tough on Hajime. He wanted to break his brother out of his timid stage and teach him to be more confident with himself. It was kind of funny because, just like legends say, the two were like yin and yang- one was sensitive whereas the other was more callous.

"I-I was all alone for so long." Hajime cried into his brother's chest (AN: In a very non-homosexual manner, thank you very much) as he thought about having nobody to lean on for so many years.

"I know," Minori said softly as he rubbed his back, "But I'm here now. I promise I won't leave you and Hilly again."

"So that's Hajime's twin, huh?" Tyson quietly turned to Ray as he watched the scene in front of him. He had to admit it made him feel happy knowing that they were back together again. He could somewhat relate to the two after what had happened with him and Hiro. He understood how Hajime was feeling now that his brother was back in his life- they meant the world to each other.

"Looks like it. It's kind of weird seeing two of them, don't you think?" Even though Ray knew which was which based on their clothes, he figured if he turned around for a second he would forget instantly and get them mixed up. Being a twin was really something special.

Kai wasn't as interested in the least. The only thing he thought was 'Great, now there's two of them.' He let out a low growl and walked past them and out the door. It was bad enough he had to deal with one bastard, but another one? He pushed the door open with enough force that it swung back and hit the wall. His thoughts were raging in his mind as he continued his walk home. He was so pissed off no other words could possibly describe what he was feeling inside. It was alright dark out and it was only 5pm- damn the fall weather. He stomped his way to the place he was staying at while he was in Japan. There was nothing really special about it to Kai- it was a penthouse in the centre of downtown square. He walked through the busy streets full of life. All stores were still open and people were roaming the streets, annoying Kai to no end. The ones that really got to him were the couples holding hands, smiling and laughing with each other. He sneered in disgust- what man in his right mind would lower his dignity to such a pitiful being? 'I would.' As much as he wanted to detest the idea of relationships and want no part of it, he longed to be close to someone like the people he saw walking by him. Deep down he wanted someone to love, cherish, protect, and love them to his limits. He wanted something mutual between someone special and himself; something unbreakable. What he wanted was Hilary. He knew he could love her infinitely and, if she felt the same, she could return his same feelings. He trusted her and knew that she was entirely faithful and would never hurt him- nor would he, her.

He sighed as he reached the entrance doors to the condo. He nodded in acknowledgement to the man standing behind the door holding it open for him. Kai made his way for the elevator and stood waiting for it with his hands in his pockets. He heard a 'ding' and the doors opened up, allowing him to step in. the doors shut tight and began to slowly make its way to the top floor. Kai stared blankly ahead of him as he thought about the big performance that had just happened. First he had to sit through the worst song in the history of life with Hilary enjoying every second of it. Then the girl of his dreams freaks out at him and hates him because some prick exposed Hilary's business and blamed Kai for the whole thing. And now, to make everything so much better in his world, a doppelganger of the idiot he hates most showed up.

The elevator made another 'ding' as he reached his floor. The doors opened and he walked out into the huge room. (AN: It's going to take about 3 pages to try and describe it so to make it easier… If you've seen the newest Twilight, the room is similar to Edward and Bella's honeymoon place.) He made his way over to the kitchen and set his car keys down on the table, realizing that he left the car back at Tyson's dojo… or Hilary's house- he couldn't remember. Taking off his shirt and throwing it to the ground he dragged his feet over to the bathroom for a well-deserved steamy hot shower (AN: Ow, owwwww ;)).

After five minutes he stepped out and wrapped a towel around his lower half, using another towel to dry his hair. He left the towel on top of his damp hair and put his hand on the towel, remembering how he had dried Hilary's when he was with her. He slumped down on the side of his bed and leaned over so his elbows were resting on his knees. Lowering his head he sighed- he would still be with her right now and at her home smiling if all this drama didn't happen. He needed a way to get rid of Hajime, and fast. He was the enemy and, most importantly, Kai's competition. He needed to win this prize more than anything though and there was no way he was going down without a fight. Hilary would be his if it was the last thing he did. He knew he was perfect for her- way better than stupid Hajime would ever be. He was even better than the stupid brother that decided to appear out of nowhere. He didn't even know who Minori was and he loathed him. She knew them since she was younger so they somewhat had the upper hand. All he did was spend some time with her and play her silly little game.

'That's it.' He got back to his feet and walked to the living room, pulling open a small drawer beside the couch. He grabbed a pad of paper and a pen, placing them both down on the coffee table. He sat himself on the couch holding the pen and leaning over the paper. He knew that Hilary loved his writing abilities and the way he 'weaved words together'. He knew he at least had that to his advantage- that and a little something else up his sleeve. He thought for a few moments before the words began to flood to his mind and he started to write them out.

He was going to make this right.

* * *

><p>Back with the Blade Breakers.<p>

* * *

><p>After Hajime and Minori were re-acquainted, the group made their way back upstairs but to the fifth floor where the game room was. Hilary sat herself down on a bean bag chair against the wall alone and watched Hajime introduce his brother. For some reason she didn't feel like she had the right to be over there with them all- she didn't think she deserved it. She lashed out at Kai and hid something so important from her friends. She knew they would have cared and supported her; not judge and criticize like she had feared. 'Kai…' She wondered what he was doing. He left in such a hurry when they were downstairs that she didn't get to apologize for how foolish she had acted. 'It wasn't that dumb, I mean, it wasn't his business to share.' But maybe she reacted when she should have thought about it before opening her big mouth. She folded her hands together holding up her legs as she brought them closer to her chest. Her sad eyes looked down in front of her. 'Poor Kai.'<p>

Her thoughts were interrupted by an all too familiar voice, "Hilly, what's wrong?" It was Minori- he departed from the chatting group and sat down next to her on the bean bag chair, making it slant slightly. She forced herself to smile at him; it was the least she could do.

"Nothing, I'm just tired."

His eyebrow quirked, "Do you think I'm stupid?"

She so badly wanted to say yes and laugh about it but she could see how serious he was about this. His eyes looked turquoise in the light- they were beautiful. She sighed to herself,

"It' nothing, really. I'm just thinking."

"About?" Still persistent as ever.

"A lot. It's not important though so don't worry about me!"

"If it's enough to do this to you, then it's important to me, too." Oh Minori, your tactics for making people speak sure haven't wavered one bit. He had a talent for making people speak their mind and spill their gut.

"I don't know," she looked back down at her legs, "Just everything. So many things have been happening at once that it's hard to maintain myself and keep from getting stressed out. I yelled at someone really special to me today…" She lowered her head down and placed it on her knees, "I don't think he'll ever forgive me."

"The guy with the blue hair right? The peacock." She slightly giggled, thinking that Kai's hair did somewhat resemble a bird. "He'll be fine. If you ask me he puts it all on," Minori shrugged his shoulders, "He's probably just a big baby hiding from reality and that's why he is how he is."

"He's like a teddy bear." Hilary smiled and hugged her knees tighter, remembering how it felt so be cuddled up next to Kai on the couch- he was so warm.

Minori snorted and burst out laughing, making Hilary look up at him questioningly. "What's so funny?" Turning his attention back to her he coughed into his hand trying to prevent himself from further laughter.

"A teddy bear-really? And he's okay with you calling him that?" Hilary blushed and she went on the defence,

"I don't see anything wrong with it! I think it's perfectly suitable for someone like him!"

"You like him, don't you?" Minori smirked as he saw her cheeks get brighter and brighter. Of course she did, if it was obvious to him then it was to the rest of the world. It always happens, it's like a movie moment- the two that have feelings for each other block out any possibility of the other wanting them, whereas, to everyone else, it's clear as day. "You should go talk to him- clear things up."

"I-I don't… I can't," her eyes traveled from Minori's face back to the ground, "He probably won't forgive me."

"Hilly, don't be stupid." Ruby met turquoise, "If you care enough about him to do it, then he should be fine with you. If not, then he missed out on having the most amazing girl anyone could find and someone else might step in to snatch you up." He winked at her before getting back to his feet. True, once he left he thought that every tie he had before had been cut, but as soon as he saw her again it was like a tidal wave crashed into his heart and every emotion came flooding back. He wanted her to know that he still cared for her and wanted to see her happy more than anything- he hadn't forgotten his promise. The only problem was his brother; he could tell there was something severely different about him even though he acted the same around him.

Besides, why fight for a girl whose heart has already been taken? There was no doubt in the world he would make sure everything was right in her life- no matter what it took.

"Hey guys, let's say we all go back to my place and rest up for tomorrow?"

Hilary and Minori looked over at Tyson pumping his fist into the air. 'What's gotten into him, now?'

"Why?" Minori sounded almost as cold as Kai- it was a nice, familiar feeling for Hilary. When she looked closely, he did somewhat resemble the phoenix. Both putting up their cold, tough exterior but on the inside they were soft as a feather.

"The big day is in less than 40 hours! We need some rest and a lot of time to rehearse, right?"

"Rehearse what?" That's right, Minori didn't know about the contest.

"There's a contest and the grand prize is a whack-load of money and the chance to perform with Nocturnal Pulse." Minori looked back down at Hilary as she explained things. He smiled and cut his eye to a brother,

"Well that's stupid." Hajime's eyebrow twitched.

"What I do isn't stupid, Minori! You should try for it though, it would be fun."

Minori rolled his eyes, "Why would I want to do something to get closer to you? I spent nine months trapped beside you- that was long enough."

Everyone laughed and Hajime turned a light pink. When it came to Minori, he was always the target because he just took it.

"Haha aww don't be so mean to him," Hilary laughed, trying to defend Hajime, "He has a good point, though. It would be nice for you to give it a go."

"Honestly, I'd rather not. I don't sing- it's just something I don't do. I'll watch it, though."

"Good enough, now let's get going!" The impatient little monkey shoved everyone out of the room and into the hallway. Minori helped Hilary to her feet and they proceeded out the door after them. The group walked backed to Tyson's house talking about their excitement for the competition. Kenny, on the other hand, was scared he would start hyperventilating- he didn't do well under pressure. Minori put out his arm, slowing Hilary's pace down so they were walking together behind the group. He put his arm down and continued looking straight ahead as he spoke.

"So why were you running out earlier?"

She was silent. She didn't really know what to say about it, nor did she want to talk about it.

"Did peacock hurt you?"

She snapped her head up to him ready to defend Kai,

"No, not at all! He would never. It's just- it's complicated."

"He must have done something to get you all worked up like that."

Her eyes softened as she remembered how she yelled at Kai and wouldn't listen to reason. How could she have been so stupid?

"He was there for me and I turned on him. I accused him of something he would never do, and now-"

"What did you accuse him of?"

"I-It's a long story, really-"

"I have time." Geez, he even cut her off like Kai did, too. Hilary sighed before continuing.

"He would never tell a secret- it wasn't in his nature. Kai's someone I can trust and really open up to. He's different from-"

"I don't need to hear your love story. Get on with what happened." He smiled at Hilary as she looked down covering up her blush.

She went on to tell him about her dad and how sick he was. She told him how Kai was there with her when she completely broke down- both about her dad and when Gorou was brought up. "Somehow everyone found out about it and I freaked out at Kai assuming it was him since he was the only one that knew asides from my family."

Minori nodded to her, showing his understanding as to why she reacted the way she did. "Hilary, do Hajime and peacock get along?"

She tilted her head at her question with a bit of a glare in her eyes. 'How rude! He completely ignored what I said!' Clearly, his acknowledging nod went unnoticed.

"No, I guess they don't. why?"

"I see." Minori had a gut feeling that his brother had something to do with this whole ordeal. His brother had become someone that he really didn't know anymore.

"How about you, Minori? What's your story?"

Minori gave Hilary a toothy grin, "I don't have one." She sweat-dropped. Of course he would reply with something completely out of context.

"How come you left in the first place? I never really saw you after my 10th birthday."

He lowered his head when she brought up her birthday- the day Gorou got into the accident. He knew it was his fault the whole thing happened. Hilary would still have her brother if Minori wasn't so selfish and asked Gorou to go get his present for her.

"I couldn't live with the guilt," he began, still looking spaced out, "My whole life was slowly falling apart and, in the process, I ended up dragging yours into it all. I lost my whole family- Gorou felt like a brother to me, too." He saw her eyes glisten with sadness when he said his name.

"Sorry. I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders and as soon as you distanced yourself from me, I couldn't handle it anymore. I was a coward and couldn't face my problems so I ran away from it all."

Hilary stopped walking, making Minori follow suit. He had paused a few feet away from her and was giving her a 'what the hell are you doing?' look. She smiled at him, "Y'know, I almost ran away from it all once, too."

He stepped closer to her as she spoke. "But someone was there to hold me back and tell me to keep fighting. He said 'You're not alone', and that was enough for me to keep struggling to smile and get through every obstacle thrown at me."

He figured she was talking about peacock from the look in her eyes and the way she smiled to herself, looking off in the distance. She was right though- he had no reason to run away. He should have stuck it out and stayed strong like she was. He brought himself closer to her and put his left hand on top of her head, ruffling her hair- another Kai attribute. "I'm done running away."

"Guys hurry up, let's go!"

* * *

><p>At Tyson's dojo everyone was reading over their lyrics and showing it to each other for some constructive criticism. Tyson had tried about-literally- thirty times to get Hajime to read it over and tell him what to fix.<p>

"Listen, I wish I could but I just can't."

"Oh come on!" Tyson pleaded, "Just one little peek?"

"No can do." Tyson slumped to the floor and sulked. He shot his head up and stared at Minori with an evil 'twinkle' in his eye. He rose to his feet and shuffled over to where he was sitting with Hilary.

"Hey Minori," he said in a questioning tone, "You and Hajime are twins, right?"

How could Minori pass up the perfect opportunity to call someone an idiot? "No, we're cousins. Why?"

Tyson rolled his eyes and Hilary chuckled, "Well, you see… I figured since you're twins and all that maybe you could read mine and tell me what you think?"

"I thought you were working with Ray?" He glanced over at Ray who was writing on another piece of paper.

"Yeah, well, he's a traitor and didn't like my ideas. So please?"

"Fine." He snatched the paper away from the bouncing Tyson and scanned through it. He blankly looked at Tyson with no emotion in his face- his eyes said it all.

"Throw it out."

"W-What?" He put both hands on his head to exaggerate his reaction, "But I worked so long on it!"

"Clearly not long enough." He flung the paper with his index and middle finger and watched it flutter to the floor. Tyson stood in front of them with waterfall tears pouring down his face, slouching over and letting his arms hang loosely.

"Well guys I better get going," Hilary stated as she hopped to her feet. "My parents are probably worried."

"I'll take you." Minori moved his legs so he could stand to his feet but was stopped by Hilary putting her hand in front of him.

"Really, you don't have to. I'm fine on my own." She smiled at him, but he knew better. She didn't want him to see the state her father was in- she wanted him to remember her father as he was when they were younger.

"Tell them I say hi." He sat back down, accepting her silent plea.

"Are you sure, Hilary?" came Ray from across the room, "It's pretty dark out."

She faced her friend and held both her hands up, waving them back and forth. "Yeah don't worry about it! See ya!"

Hilary made her way out into the night; the cold wind playing with her hair. Halloween was only a few days away, "I wonder what I should be?" She hugged herself as another gust of wind tore through the air- it was unusually cold this year. She was at the corner of her street when she saw someone standing under a street light out front of her house. She cautiously made her way closer as she was planning out what her escape route would be if it was a bad person. She could run pretty fast but she doubted it would be enough if this person meant business.

She grew closer to the person, almost able to make out what they looked like. She knew it was a man- tall, slim, dark hair. It was difficult to tell though because the light was sort of fading them out.

"Umm, can I help you?" She asked nervously, awaiting a response. The person didn't turn to look at her, though, and remained staring inside the house. She shifted her body so she was facing his side, getting a better look at his facial features. He had ruby eyes, similar to hers, and his hair was light brown. He wore a black jacket and ripped jeans, along with a pair of sneakers.

"Excuse me, sir?"

The man looked at Hilary sideways and smiled warmly at the sound of her voice. He turned so his body was fully facing her and she gasped,

"Gorou!"

The street light flickered and shut off. The light reappeared as quickly as it vanished, but so did the figure. Tears swelled up in her eyes as she stared at the spot where she had seen the silhouette. 'No way.' She dropped to her knees in the middle of the sidewalk lifelessly. She couldn't believe what she had just seen- there's no way it could have been her brother, he was gone. She glanced over at the house where he was looking in and saw her mother standing in front of her sleeping father on the couch. Maybe it was a warning.

Hilary shook her head; he probably came for a visit to see how the family was doing. She shook her head once more, but this time more fiercely. 'What am I thinking?' She concluded that she was crazy and stood back to her feet, dusting off her legs. She walked up to the front door and unlocked it. Upon stepping in she saw that papers had been thrown on the floor and things that were previously on the table rested on the floor, as well. The kitchen table had been moved from its original spot- like someone bumped into it. She looked over at her mom. 'She was crying.'

"Mom what happened?"

Akahana's gaze groggily moved from her husband's face to her daughters, "He went out of control again."

"W-what? When?"

"About an hour ago; he's fine now, though. I managed to give him the pills in time before things got worse." Hilary watched as her mom slowly pulled the sleeve of her shirt lower, covering up a dark purple mark.

"Did he hurt you?" she asked softly. Akahana's eyes filled with tears and she walked toward her daughter, hugging her tightly. "It was that bad, huh?" She rubbed her mother's back and held her close. Guilt struck Hilary like lightening- she shouldn't have been left alone. She was supposed to be there with her mom but she still left to go with the guys to see that stupid building.

"I'm so sorry." She nuzzled into her mother's neck and let her cry.

A few hours had passed since her mother fell asleep and Hilary went up to her room. It was now 4 in the morning and she hadn't gotten in a wink of sleep. It was safe to say she was beyond exhausted. She wind was blowing quite harsh, making the tree branch outside hit her window. Her stomach began to rumble, "Ugh, I'm starving!" She didn't have anything to eat at all the other day and now it was getting to her. She swung her legs around to the edge of the bed and hopped off. She tip-toed down the hall, careful not to wake up her mom. She walked downstairs slowly cautiously so she didn't slip- also so she didn't wake up her father still sleeping on the couch. She snuck her way into the kitchen and opened up the fridge.

She scanned every shelf until she found what she was looking for. 'Aha!' She pulled out a jug of orange juice and some carrots slices, along with the dipping sauce. She placed it on the table and turned back to shut the fridge. She reached over to the cupboards and pulled down a glass.

"What are you doing up?" It was her father. 'Shit!'

"Uh- Hey dad, sorry for waking yo-"

"I asked what you're doing up." His tone had changed to a more demanding on- he had never been this scary before.

"I was getting a snack. I didn't eat all day and I'm hungry."

"Put it all away."

"Bu-"

"I said NOW!" He slammed his fist on the table making the place of carrots rattle. Her hands began to shake and she could feel chills run through her body. She knew what he was capable of but didn't know what he was going to do.

"O-Okay dad."

"Stop stuttering you sound like a fool."

She reached back up into the cupboard and placed the glass back where she got it from. She cautiously stretched her arm over to the table and grabbed the dip and orange juice, placing it back into the fridge. She heard her father growl,

"That's not where they were." She had put them on a shelf lower than they were when she first took it out.

"It fits better there tho-"

"Fix. It. Now." His hand was now holding the plate holding it out for her to take it. His grip on the plate was so tight that his knuckles were turning white.

"Dad you should ease up and relax a li-"

"Did I say you can speak?" Now her whole body began to tremble. Every single thing was setting him off- this was not good. Before she could respond, the plate was hurled at the fridge door and shattered to pieces. A shard of it cut the side of her face and blood instantly began to pour down her cheek. He spit on the floor by her feet, "You disgust me."

She backed away from him, pressing her back against the fridge. He neared her and put one hand around her neck while the other was squeezing her forearm.

"D-dad let go," she choked out, "Y-you're hur-rting me."

Tears formed in her eyes once more, but not out of fear. She was losing her breath and wasn't able to take in any new ones. She could feel his hand around her neck squeezing tighter and tighter.

He stared into her eyes with hatred- but that quickly changed when he saw her tears. His hands loosened their grip and he stepped away from her, looking down at his shaking hands. Hilary dropped to the floor and holding on to her neck as she gasped, choking for air. Fumito brought his hands to his face and his eyes widened, "Hilary oh my god!"

She looked up at her father from her place on the floor and gave a small smile, still struggling to breathe, "I'm h-happy you're back."

"What have I done?" He, too, dropped to the floor on his knees. He stared at his daughter lying on the floor in front of him, "I'm so sorry."

Hilary stumbled as she got back to her feet, reaching back into the cupboard to pull down his pills. She shook them into her trembling hand and got him a cup of water. "Here dad, take these."

Fumito looked at the pills in her blood covered hand from the gash on her cheek. His eyes trailed up to where he had squeezed her forearm- the bruise was almost black. He then focused on her neck. The handprint was so clear and dark red, outlined deep purple. There were small cuts in her neck where his nails had dug into her skin.

"Dad come on, you need them."

He began to cry as he took his medicine from his daughter's weak hand. She pulled him into a comforting hug, "It's okay, dad. I'm here."

* * *

><p>Hilary woke up the next morning wincing in pain and clutching her neck. There was a burning sensation rippling through her arm and neck as she moved herself to sit up on her bed. She brought herself to the washroom and looked in the mirror at her injuries, they were even worse than last night. She lifted her hand slowly and placed it on her cheek, lining the dried up blood from the cut. She had to find a way to hide it from everyone, including her mom. She couldn't let anyone see it because it would just destroy her father even more than he already was. She quietly walked back to her room and searched through her drawers to find something to cover up the bruises. 'Perfect!'<p>

She pulled out a pink long-sleeved turtle neck sweater. It was a little out-dated, but she could rock it. She found a pair of white pants to match the sweater, along with pink flats. As for the cut on her face, she had no idea what to do. She washed off the crusted blood and found a bandaid under the bathroom sink. Hilary walked out of the bathroom and past her mom's bedroom. She peeked inside to find it empty. 'Hmm."

She made her way downstairs and her father was missing too. She began to get a little worried, thinking of all the possibilities of what could have happened. But before she started to panic she found note on the kitchen table. It read:

_Hilary,_

_Your father and I went to the hospital for a check-up. We won't be back home until late tonight or possibly tomorrow. There's some French fries in the freezer you can put in the oven. Takumi stopped by and took Pochie with him so you don't have to worry about him._

_Love mom._

She sighed to herself, 'At least I don't have to worry about them seeing me like this.' But she had bigger problems. Just as she finished her thought the phone rang. She groaned, reaching into her pocket and seeing Tyson's face pop up on the screen. She sweat-dropped; she forgot that he set everyone's picture to their number.

"What do you want Tyson?"

"We're all going to the mall, want to join?"

"Uhh," she didn't want to refuse spending time with her friends, but she didn't want to risk them finding out about what happened.

"Great! See you soon!"

"Wait, Tyso-!" The phone beeped indicating that he hung up, "Argh!" Well this was just great- absolutely wonderful.

"Alright calm down, Hilary. You can do this!" She put on her jacket while grabbing her house keys and walked over to Tyson's house. As she neared the dojo the sky had turned dark grey- clouds completely covering the sun. Rain started to spit to the ground and the wind picked up. Hilary made it about half way to Tyson's house before it began to downpour, making her jog the last few blocks.

She ran through the entrance using her jacket as an umbrella and continued running up to the front door. The flung the sliding door open and charged her way inside. She panted as she took off her coat, letting her wet hair hang down her back dripping on the floor.

"Hey you actually came!" Tyson's annoying voice came from the other room. He took Hilary's coat out of her hands and hung it up in the closet. He turned back to face his friend and raised his eyebrow,

"What's with that thing on your face?" he asked, pointing to her bandage. "Epic ninja fight?"

"Oh, uh," she had to think of something believable- and fast, "I-uh, I was outside with Pochie and tripped over the front steps. I fell and cut my face. It's no big deal."

Tyson, being the gullible fool he was, laughed at her and put his arm around her shoulders, leading her into the main room where everyone else She thanked the heavens that Tyson was the way he was because otherwise this wouldn't have gone over so easily.

"Hilary you're soaked!" No shit, Sherlock. Hajime got to his feet and went over to her, pulling at her wet hair and wringing it out. "You're gonna get sick."

"Aw man, you got stuck in the rain as soon as it got to its worst!" The other genius, Daichi, called out.

"Well hello to you, too," she said sarcastically. 'At least they care.' "I'm fine, guys. I'll dry off in a bit."

"You should change into something dry right now rather than later," Minori stated as he stared her down. He felt something was different about her- and it wasn't exactly good.

"Really, I'm alright, it's just water. Not like I'm allergic to it or anything." She giggled and shook out her hair. She smiled to her friends that were scattered across the room chatting and munching on their snacks. Although the room was filled with people, it felt empty to her. There was something missing- or rather, someone. 'Kai…' She hadn't seen him since the other day. Being without him last night didn't do her any justice. She could barely sleep, especially after the event that took place. She wanted to know where he was; if he was alright. "Hey guys, have you seen-"

"Homegirl you're drippin' all over my floors!" Way to interrupt, Grandpa. Hilary faced the man and smiled, putting her hand behind her head.

"I'll clean it all up, I promise!" Grandpa shook his head in disapproval,

"No can do, little miss. You can borrow some of Tyson's clothes s your dry. Now git goin'!" He shoved Hilary into the bathroom to dry off and wait for a change of clothes. She could hear Tyson protesting from the other room and everyone shouting back at him to suck it up and be a man.

"I'd rather be a boy than have her wear my stuff!" (AN: as opposed to a man; get it? good.)

She stood in front of the mirror staring at herself as she took off her top. The marks were even more prominent than they were earlier. It looked like she got into a heated fight and came out as the loser. There was a knock at the door, "Hilary, here." It was Max. She cracked the door open hiding herself behind it as she took the clothes from him. She sighed to herself, 'Of course they'd give me a t-shirt.'

She slipped the yellow shirt over her head and then began to remove her pants, replacing them with navy blue sweatpants. The outfit wasn't actually all that bad in her opinion, minus the fact that now the bruises were clearly visible. Her mind clicked into action and she thought up a strategy. Quietly opening the bathroom door, Hilary snuck out and tip-toed over to the closet. She grabbed her jacket and zipped it up to her neck so that it was covering the black mark around her throat. 'Perfect!'

She made her way back to where the guys were and they gave her a funny look. She looked down at herself then back up at them, "What, is there something on my face?"

"No but you look weird." Hilary's vein pulsed at Daichi's comment, making a mental note about that one for later.

"Yeah Hilary, take your jacket off we're inside," Max agreed with the monkey. She didn't see what was so wrong with the jacket- it was cute, comfortable, stylish, and hid things very well.

"Nah, I'd prefer to keep it on." She smiled at her friends then looked over at Minori who did not seem too impressed.

"Take your jacket off! The fluff is gonna get on my shirt!" Of course that's the only thing Tyson cared about. He was so selfish sometimes- not to mention oblivious.

"It'll be fine Tyson. Besides, I'll wash it and everything for you!" She forced out another smile along with a nervous giggle. She wasn't the best liar, and she certainly was no good at keeping things a secret.

"You had no problem taking it off when you first got here," Minori said, folding his arms and looking into her eyes. What did she think he was, stupid?

"B-because," uh oh, she was running out of ideas, "It was warmer with my other shirt on but brr is it ever cold in here with just a t-shirt!"

He cocked his eyebrow. 'What a liar.' "Hilary what are you hiding?"

Ray turned his attention towards Minori, "Maybe she's just cold. Some people get the chills a lot easier than others."

"Y-yeah Minori, the breeze blowing in is making me cold."

"There isn't a breeze. And the heat is on." She hated how serious he was being right now; it made her feel as uneasy as ever. He was staring into her eyes reading her every move; he knew everything about Hilary and what she did when she was nervous.

"But I-"

"Take off the jacket." Her eyes became slightly bigger and she held on to the front of her coat, 'Shit!'

"Come on, Hilary."

"Yeah! Let's see how you look in Tyson's clothes!" She looked over at Daichi as he encouraged Minori's request.

"N-no! I look awful in it, that's why I want to wear the jacket. Really I'm-"

"What don't you want to show us?" How is it that Minori always knew when something was up? He let his arms drop to his sides as he took a step towards her. "And what's with the bandage on your face?"

'Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit-' "I-I sliced it on a tree branch while I was walking home last night!"

"That's not what you told me," Tyson exclaimed as he watched Hilary awkwardly look over at him, "You told me that it happened when you were with Pochie."

"Hilary what's going on?" questioned Ray in a worried tone as he got to his feet. "What are you trying to keep secret?"

Now she was at a loss for words- she knew she shouldn't have gone over in the first place. She couldn't keep a straight face and lying was, evidently, not her strong suit. She scanned all the faces looking at her while they waited for her answer. She had no idea what to do. She stumbled backwards a bit and she bit her lip.

"Hilary please tell us," came another worried voice.

"Max really, I'm fine!"

"Then take off your coat." When will Minori give up on being so persistent?

"Hilly, did someone hurt you?" Her eyes grew bigger as her attention was brought over to Hajime making his way to her. He put his hand on the sleeve of her jacket and she quickly pulled away.

"N-no! I'm fine guys, please!"

Daichi suddenly jumped on top of her and held her down on the ground. "D-Daichi, stop!"

"Come on!" He yelled over to Tyson as he got up and helped take it off. (AN: Geez, sounds like she's being raped. I assure you she isn't!) Tyson gasped as he threw the jacket to the ground and got to his feet, examining Hilary's body.

Ashamed, she kept her head down and used her elbows to lift herself so she was sitting up. Gasps were heard around the room as they gaped at what was in front of them. She sat on the floor with her hair covering her face. Hilary slowly removed the bandage on her cheek revealing a large gash that had re-opened from taking off the material. A small trail of blood slid down the side of her face, lining the cut.

She lifted her head up to look into her friends' eyes. She couldn't figure out what any of them were thinking- their expressions were unreadable, almost emotionless. Ray was the first to speak up,

"H-…Hilary, what happened to you?" His main focus was the massive bruise around her neck. She covered it up with her hand, feeling awkward.

Tyson crouched down in front of his best friend and cupped her unharmed cheek in his hand. His eyes were filled with sadness, "Who did this to you, Hil?" She refused to allow her eyes to meet his, knowing that they would spill over with tears. She continued looking to the ground and spoke just above a whisper,

"Nothing."

"But Hilary you-"

"Tyson I said it's nothing!" She snapped her head up to face him as she yelled. She felt her eyes start to water and she averted her gaze back to the ground, "Just please. Leave me alone."

"We can't leave you alone if this is going to happen." Minori said with anger in his voice. He couldn't believe that someone would do this to sweet little Hilary. She never did anything wrong- at least he didn't think she did since he was away for so long. "Who did this? And don't lie about it."

She couldn't bring herself to say 'It was my dad. He lost all control and went crazy last night. He threw a plate at me and it scratched my face. Then he pinned me to the fridge by my neck and arm and I almost blacked out from lack of oxygen.' "Nobody did." Wrong answer.

"How the fuck can you say it wasn't anybody? Look at yourself, Hilary! How could you let this happen? Why didn't you tell us?" Minori shouted with rage as he glared at her- his eyes moving from her cheek, to her neck, to her arm, then back to her eyes. "Why didn't you get someone?"

"Brother, calm down," Hajime said, placing a hand on Minori's shoulder. It was shaken off as he continued to shout, "How the hell can I be calm? Look what happened to her!"

"This is why I don't want to tell you," Hilary trailed off with her soft voice, only loud enough that Tyson picked up on it. "What was that?" He asked in the same gentle tone.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Speak up, Hilary. We'd all like to hear this."

"Minori, stop it." Ray let out a low growl as he watched Minori glare even harder at Hilary. He knew that he cared about her and that's why he was being this way, but this wasn't the right time to react the way he was. 'It's something Kai would do, too.'

Tyson's eyes never left Hilary's and he asked her once more, "Please, Hils. If you tell us then we can help you. Who did this to you?"

Finally allowing her eyes to meet his, the tears began to fall down her face. "M-my dad lost control again," she said shakily, "H-he… he did the same to my mother, and then to me last night. I tried to stop him b-but I couldn't." She took in a deep breath trying to hold herself back from completely breaking down in front of her friends.

"He's l-losing his memory faster than w-we thought he would."

The room went silent as she finished speaking. Tyson pulled her into a light hug, being careful not to press against her wounds.

"How long has this been going on?" Max sounded almost scared to ask seeing the state Hilary was in. Saying the wrong this could potentially make her fall apart.

"The memory loss h-has been the past few days," she leaned back, away from Tyson's hold and wiped her eyes. "This," she looked down at her arm, "Was just last night."

"Does Kai know?" All eyes turned to Hajime who was now standing with his arms folded. Ray so badly wanted to say 'Now isn't the time for your petty rivalry' but bit his tongue to keep the words in.

Hilary's eyes widened in fear thinking of what Kai would do if he found out. It was the first night he was away from her and something terrible had happened- she knew he wouldn't forgive himself for leaving her. "N-No! Kai can't find out."

"How come?"

"Because, Ray, you don't understand!" He would lose his mind and go on a killing spree- that's what would happen. "Kai just can't know about this. Please."

"It would be better if he did," came Minori calmly, "He could help yo-"

"I don't need his help!" Now it was her turn to do all the interrupting. "It's fine, really. This will all be over once I win the competition."

Tyson raised his eyebrow at her, "What about it?"

"I can use the prize money to get the equipment delivered to his hospital so they can repair the damage that the disease has done to his brain."

The room fell silent once again. They all felt so selfish wanting the money for their own wants. They didn't think twice about doing something good or beneficial with it. "Hilary, why didn't you ask me for some spare change? I would give you it any time."

She smiled at Tyson's offer, "Thanks, but I could never do that. I would never be able to pay you back."

"Psh, who says you have to pay me back? If you need it, it's yours! How much do you need?"

"Three million."

Tyson's face could have turned green. "Th-three million?"

"Yep, three million."

"Three million dollars?" Daichi sounded just as shocked and taken back as Tyson. That was a whole lot of money.

"Hil, I don't even have close to a third of that."

"It's fine Tyson, I'll find a way of getting it."

"I never said I wouldn't give you any, it's just that I don't think I have enough to cover what you need. How much do you have so far?"

Hilary sighed to herself, calculating the numbers in her head. "Only thirty-five thousand. I need about two million and ninety-six thousand more."

"Well I can for sure donate my hefty five thousand I saved up!" Everyone sweat-dropped- oh yeah, Tyson, look at you big spender.

"And I can help too," Max stated, "I can get my mom to send over some extra cash from my American bank!"

"Oh yeah, and how much is that?" Tyson asked, challenging his friend to beat his offer.

"About six grand." Challenge accepted.

"I have ten grand saved up from the last world championship. If you want it Hilary, it's yours." Ray smiled at her, earning a glare from Tyson. "Hey, that was my line!"

"Uhh," Hilary looked towards Daichi as he pointed his two index fingers together repeatedly, "I kind of spent my savings… but I have a hundred if you want!"

Hilary smiled sweetly at her friends- she could have burst right back into tears. "Thank you so much, guys. You don't have to do this but just- thank you so much. It means the world to me."

"And how about you, cheapskate?" Everyone's head turned toward Hajime as Tyson called him out.

"I haven't made really anything just yet- I just started my career."

Minori reached into his pockets and pulled out all the travelling cash he had. "Sorry Hilly, but this is all I have."

He tried handing it to her but she pushed it away, "No, no! That's all you have to live off of, you don't need to support me right now, Minori. Care for yourself before you worry about others."

He rolled his eyes, "Practice what you preach- now take it." He stuffed the money into her hands and she counted it. It totalled up to two hundred. "Thank you." He returned her smile and he shifted his attention to his stingy brother.

"So? Any offerings?"

Hajime grumbled to himself as he dug into his left pocket, pulling out a shiny green bank card. He tossed it to Hilary, "You can have whatever is on there. I'm pretty sure it's at least fifteen grand." His brother walked over to him and slapped him on the back in a congratulatory way.

"Good job, bro. Starting today you've become a saint."

The group laughed at Hajime as he shoved his brother away from him. He never really found Minori's jokes amusing.

"Oh, hey Minori," called Tyson, "If you want you can crash here for as long as you need to."

"So Hilary, what does that leave you at?" Ray moved in closer to where she was sitting and plopped himself down on the floor across from her. She looked up at the ceiling mumbling to herself and drawing numbers in the air. "Seven hundred and thirteen thousand. I need…" She began doing her math in the air once more. Ray was astounded by how brilliant she really was- he could never do that.

She sighed sadly to herself, "Two million two-hundred and eighty-seven thousand."

"Well hey, don't be so down, Hilary," Ray tried to lighten her up, "It's progress, right? And if you win the competition- I mean, even if I win it then you'll get the six-hundred grand!"

She looked up at him when he corrected himself with what he was saying. He grinned at her while he answered before she could ask, "I'm saying that you need it a lot more than I do. So if I win, then you can have it."

"Yeah same here, I don't really need it for anything special."

"I guess I could go on my eating-spree another day!"

"Yeah same!" All her friends were agreeing in sequence with Ray. They were willing to give up their potential prize for her.

The tears began to form in her eyes, "Thanks guys, this means so much." Everyone smiled at her- she really did have the most amazing friends anyone could ever ask for.

"No worries, Hil. We've got your back all the way!"

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Alright, I made this chapter as long as I could before I thought it was a good idea to cut it off. So a lot went on and it may be confusing to some people. I apologize in advance for that. If you have any questions and need some clarification, send me a message or ask in the reviews and I'll be happy to answer :)

It was pretty hard trying to manage around all these numbers- ayyyeeeee. I failed my grade 10 math class a few years back and it doesn't seem like I've improved whatsoever haha.

I should be updating again shortly… maybe.

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	11. Fire and Ice

Woohoo, finished my first exam! It is now Monday, December 12th and I'm beginning the next chapter. Let's see how long it takes me to do this one while fitting in study time... If I even study… heh heh heh. So my first exam was a breeze- Guess I'm just a genius ;D Not.

Thanks again to all my reviewers; I'm so happy a lot of people actually like my story! I've been watching v-force and g-rev over again to make sure I can keep everyone in proper character… and re-watch all the kaihil moments hehe :D

Enough of my nonsense- on with the fic!

Oh, and Kai is back in this chapter. Sorry for cutting him out so early in the last one- it broke my heart not writing about him!

* * *

><p>Chapter 11:<p>

The Blade Breakers, Hilary, and the twins made it to the mall and dispersed to roam around to their own preferred stores. Tyson, Max, Ray, and Kenny went to look at blade parts while Minori followed Hilary to where ever she was headed. Hajime, on the other hand, did his own thing and checked around the music store- he didn't want to be around when Hilary and Minori were together. The jealousy in him ignited whenever she smiled at his twin and it drove him crazy. First there was Kai stepping in the way and now his own flesh and blood. 'At least Kai took off crying to himself so he's no worry anymore.' Hajime smirked sinisterly, remembering how broken Kai's face looked when Hilary turned her back on him. Yeah, sure it was harsh- 'Whatever works.'

He walked around the music store browsing through every aisle trying to find a decent album. There was nothing to his liking asides from his own lyrics. Ever since he had joined the band, he became much more cocky and hard-headed. After confirming there was nothing worth his time listening to in the last section of the store, he looked through some posters. He smiled arrogantly as he flipped to the next poster and saw himself. He was singled out in it, wearing his leather jacket, jeans, black shoes, and red t-shirt. The smile immediately vanished as he saw the next one. He gritted his teeth together and glared at it. 'Kai.' There stood the two-toned blader with his arms folded and scarf blowing around him- and damn did he look fine! It was clearly fan-made because there was no way he would ever make the same seductive face that was on the poster. (AN: Although we all wish he would!)

"Hmph." Hajime whipped the posters to the side, stuffed his hands into his pockets and made his way back out into the mall. If he didn't look so miserable maybe people would have recognized who he was- they just kept on walking by him like he was as average as anyone else. He hated it. He hated not having the attention. Most of all, he hated Kai. He was always getting in the way of him and Hilary- why couldn't he just butt out? 'Things were bad enough as they were, did that loser have to make everything worse?'

He paused as he came across Hilary and Minori walking through the food court. He saw her smiling up at his brother, causing the fire in his stomach to burn up again. He watched as Hilary paid for their meal since Minori was broke and tried to stuff food into his face. He hated seeing her happy with someone else. He hated his brother.

'That should be me!'

He stormed off in the opposite direction towards the door- something had to be done about this, and fast.

"Minori, come on! It's the least I can do!" Hilary pushed French fries in front of Minori's face, only to have the pushed back.

"No, you eat them."

"But Minori you don't have any money left- please!" Another failed attempt. She felt bad that he had no more money because he gave it all to support her father. Not only that, but she felt she owed him for all their younger years when he did anything and everything for her.

"Hilary, I said no. I'm not even hungry, just take care of yourself." That was a big lie. Truth is, he hasn't eaten in days and it felt like his stomach was eating his insides. He would have gladly taken it if it were from someone else- but not Hilary. She had enough to worry about as is and he didn't want to add himself to her list.

She pulled the box of fries to herself and stuck her head up in the air, huffing. "Suit yourself!"

"Hey," Minori began, trying to catch her attention once more. She slowly turned back around with a fry sticking out of her mouth waiting for him to continue. He laughed lightly, "Isn't it your friend's birthday soon?"

She pushed the fry into her mouth with one finger and finished chewing before she responded. Mama always said it was rude to talk with your mouth full.

"Hmm?" Minori sighed, leaning his forehead into his palm. She really didn't know.

"Peacock, his birthday's in less than a month."

"Oh! Kai, really?" She had no idea, nobody had ever told her. She knew that the Blade Breakers always held parties for him but they were never on the actual day.

"Yeah, I thought you of all people would know," he winked at her, causing her to cheeks to turn pink. "I overheard your friends talking about throwing him a party. What are you getting for him?"

Hilary put her hands on her hips and furrowed her brow, "They never told me! How rude! I bet they weren't even going to invite me!"

"They probably weren't 'cause they obviously expect you to be there, Hilly."

"Ah," she set her hands down into her lap and smiled at Minori, "That's true. But I haven't gotten him anything; I don't even know what to get him. Where would I start?"

"I know what you could give him." He gave her a sly smirk and raised his eyebrows. It took her a moment before she realized what he was implying and threw a fry at his head, blushing madly.

"You idiot!"

Minori put his hands over his head protecting himself from flying fries, "I'm kidding! Relax yourself, I wouldn't expect you to do that. How about that 'bleybad' stuff? He's into that, too, right?"

Hilary sweat-dropped. 'Bleybad?' "It's called Beyblade."

"Yeah that shit!"

She shook her head, "I don't really know much about that even though I've been part of their team for so long. I don't think that would go over well anyway- Kai doesn't like when people tamper or try to take part in his life."

"He doesn't seem to mind you doing it." Minori leaned back into his chair and folded his arms over his chest, smiling. He had a point, and a good one at that. Kai didn't mind Hilary being a part of his life at all- in fact, he wanted her to be a major part of it but Hilary was too oblivious to realize this.

"I-I don't know… maybe a shirt? Hmm, but I don't know what size he is."

Minori smirked and laughed to himself before replying. He mocked Hilary's voice and used air quotes, "'Size sexy' right?"

"You're an idiot. What about a card with money in it? That could work!"

"You don't have any money."

Another sweat-drop, "Oh yeah."

Kai was almost impossible to shop for. She knew he was so picky with everything and ruled out at least have of her ideas. "Ugh, stupid Russian!"

"He's Russian, huh?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure he is since he's from Russia and all…" Minori gave her a look as she realized her dumb response. 'Of course he's from Russia.'

"Well, take him somewhere that reminds him of home- like a restaurant."

"I can't afford high-end places like that."

"Oh yeah," he pondered, "Better yet, why don't you take him back to Russia?"

Hilary beamed at the idea, it was perfect! He would be able to go and visit his home and friends. Maybe she could get him two tickets so that way he could bring some company along with him! Her head dropped as she remembered the reason why she turned down every other offer,

"Tickets are so expensive, though."

"Can't you ask your dad's work for a discount?" She shook her head, there's no way she could inconvenience her dad's life for this.

"No, no, I couldn't do that." She sighed, there goes another idea out the window.

"How about this," Minori began, leaning onto the table. Hilary perked up, "You spend the money that you need from what you've collected from everyone and I'll squeeze some cash out of my brother."

"Yeah! That would be- wait, no! I don't think he would ever agree to that!"

"True, but I always get my way when I want something. Don't worry about it- leave it all to me." He poked his chest with his thumb and grinned at her. He knew how badly she wanted to get Kai something perfect, even impress him. He knew the feeling so well because he was once in that situation- but instead of a happy ending, it resulted in Hilary losing her brother. He would definitely make up for it and see her happy again. He would do all it took to make her happy, even if it meant seeing her with Kai. Minori knew that he would always have a special place in Hilary's heart, even if he was second- even last- to Kai.

"Are you sure? I mean, it's a lot of mon-"

"I said yes, now shut up and finish eating." If she wasn't so happy with his offer she would have mumbled countless profanities at him.

'This is going to be the best present ever!'

"How much do you think it's going to be?"

Minori went on the internet from his phone to search the best deals he could find. "Well, the best there is, is eight-hundred per ticket. So you're looking at about two thousand."

Hilary sweat-dropped, 'This is also going to be the most expensive present ever.'

"Hey guys!" The two turned their heads to the direction of an annoyingly familiar voice. Tyson was waving at them with the rest of the group, "Come on, we're going now!"

"Coming!" Hilary shouted back as she stood up from her seat and put her jacket back on. She looked over at Minori who was waiting for her to walk ahead of him, extending his arm dramatically to emphasize his courtesy.

Hilary giggled, "Why thank you, kind sir."

"Any time, m'lady."

* * *

><p>The group got back to Tyson's house and dumped all their bags onto the floor.<p>

"Look what I got!" Daichi gloated, showing off his new attack ring (AN: I'm so rusty with this stuff so go easy on me.)

"Oh yeah?" Tyson countered, whipping out his merch from the bag, "Well check out mine! It's better than yours 'cause it's silver."

"So what! Mine's yellow and just as cool!"

"Uh, no!"

"Yeah!"

"No!"

"You stink!"

"You're a chimp!"

The two went head to head bantering back and forth entertaining the others in the room. Turning their attention away from the twits, Ray was next to show what he bought. He pulled out a pink cocktail dress with silver sequence trailing along the sides of it and forming a belt around the centre.

"Wow Ray, it'll look great on you," Max taunted Ray and giggled to himself. Hilary and Minori laughed along with Max while Ray blushed and Kenny downloaded some new software onto Dizzy.

"Very funny, Max. It's for Mariah- we're going to her parent's anniversary in a few weeks so I figured I would get something special."

"Aww Ray that's so sweet!" Hilary clasped her hands together as her eyes sparkled with admiration; he was so sweet! "I wish I had someone like you! When's the party?"

"It's around mid-November and it's back home in China so I'll likely be gone for the week."

"But that's Kai's birthday- are you not sticking around this year?"

"I can't Max, you guys are going to have to celebrate it without me."

'So that's when his birthday is…' "What date is Kai's birthday?" Tyson and Daichi quit their arguing to join in on the conversation,

"It's November 18th. Didn't you know, Hil?"

"Obviously not if I'm asking you, Tyson. What are you guys doing for him this year?"

"Well," Ray began, "We were planning on bringing in all the teams he's battled and have a party here at Tyson's. There was a change of plans on my part so my team won't be a part of it."

"That's alright Ray," Tyson grinned as he patted his friend on the back, "We can reschedule the entire thing for a better time!"

"When are you thinking Ty? 'Cause Christmas is coming up and my mom wants me home early for the holidays."

"Seriously, Max? You won't be with us this year?" Max shook his head and looked back at Tyson, "Sorry but I need to be with my family this time- it's been so long."

"Why are you all talking about Christmas when it's not even Halloween?" Hilary walked over and stood beside monkey boy.

"It's called planning ahead. It's pretty convenient in situations like this where the team is splitting up for personal matters."

"Oh," he nodded his head, looking up to face Hilary, "And what about you? What are your plans?"

"I don't really have any. I'll probably stay home for Christmas again and my parents will go off to their usual resort."

"So you spend Christmas alone?" Hilary turned her attention towards Tyson as he asked her. She had spent every Christmas alone for the past 4 years- it wasn't that big of a deal to her. It's not like she enjoyed a big Christmas party or anything.

"Yeah, it's actually quite enjoyable if I do say so myself."

"You shouldn't be spending it by yourself Hilly." Great, now Minori was in on the action. Why was he always like this when her personal information suddenly gets leaked into a conversation?

"It's not that big of a deal, though. Anyways! Guys what does Kai usually do for his birthday?"

Ignoring her sudden change in topic Max responded, "He usually goes home around the actual date to visit family he says. Then he comes back and we have a big party!"

"I see…" then it hit her, "Hey! Why haven't I been invited to the other ones?"

"We didn't think we had to ask you and you never showed up because you didn't want to!" Silly Tyson, never say that kind of thing to Hilary. Everything running through her mind consisted of Kai hating her for not being there on his special day. She had no idea when it was- it wasn't her responsibility to keep his date of birth on her calendar! No- it was Tyson's! 'But he goes home for it…'

"Around when does he leave for Russia?"

"The day of- why Hilary?" Of course Ray would be the one to pick up on what her questions were about.

"Well, I was thinking of getting him tickets to fly home for a week or something because it's his special day. I mean, his team is there and everything, right?"

Before Ray could get a word out, Tyson spoke them for him, "You don't have the money Hila-"

"I've got that covered," Minori stepped in answering for her, "Just let her get what she wants. It's important to her."

Tyson shrugged his shoulders not seeing what the big deal was. "Alright, do what you want. Who's hungry?"

"Me!" Everyone in the room called out at Tyson's question and walked into the kitchen; all but one. Ray stood behind with Hilary- he had some questions.

"Hey Hilary, mind talking to me for a sec?"

"Uhh, sure Ray. What's up?" She sat down on the floor next to him, wondering what he wanted to talk about.

"You and Minori are childhood friends, right?"

"Right."

"Same with Hajime, right?"

"Right…" She answered sceptically. What was he getting at?

"And they know about Kai, right?"

"Ri- Hey wait! What do you mean 'know about'?"

Ray chuckled to himself at her confusion, "I mean that they both know that he's been a part of your life- as well as the rest of us- for a few years now."

"O-oh, yeah, right. Why?"

"Well, I know that one of them is in favour of him being around, whereas the other is the complete opposite," he began, scooting himself closer to her and lowering his voice so the others couldn't hear what he was saying. "Hajime sabotaged Kai. He made you think that Kai told everyone what had happened so you would hate him."

Hilary gasped, 'No way.' There's no way that Hajime would ever do something like that; he would never hurt her. Would he?

"How do you know this?"

"Because, Hilary, I'm the only one that Kai told. He wanted me to cover for you while you were at home and the hospital so that the others wouldn't question where you were. Then out of nowhere Hajime showed up and suddenly knew everything. It's weird… I don't trust him."

Hilary couldn't believe what she was hearing. Sure she had questioned Hajime's loyalty as a friend but she never- not once- would have thought he'd do something like this. It wasn't in his nature. Or at least it never used to be.

"You're kidding…" Ray closed his eyes and shook his head. "I wouldn't joke about this, Hilary. It really damaged Kai- we haven't heard from him in a while. He's probably at home whining to himself right now."

Hilary's head lowered at Ray's attempt at a joke. She didn't mean to hurt Kai- she cared about him so much, she never meant to be mean or anything.

"Well, look," Ray started again, making Hilary lift her head to look at him, "I think your present is a great idea. But before his big day I think you should talk to him- at least before tomorrow in case something else pops up."

She nodded, knowing what she had to do. She would have to walk straight up to Kai and demand him to forgive her! 'Yeah, that's right!' She got herself pumped up and jumped to her feet, "Alright, Ray. Let's go eat!" She marched into the kitchen leaving Ray sitting on the floor puzzled at her sudden burst of energy. He smiled to himself as he watched her retreating back. 'Like fire and ice- they balance each other out.'

* * *

><p>Day of the Competition<p>

* * *

><p>Hilary woke up with a big smile on her face. 'Today's the day.' She had stayed up all night writing a new song; she didn't feel it was right to use the one she and Kai wrote together. It was his piece too so it was only fair if he had say in when it should be performed.<p>

She happily hopped out of bed and rushed to the bathroom to shower. She had never entered something like this in her life- or anything for that matter- so she didn't really know how she should present herself. She debated over what she should wear. 'If I wear a dress I'll look pretty but maybe a little over-done… I could wear pants and a dress shirt! No, then I'm trying too hard…' Opening her drawer she found a simple long sleeved white top and a navy blue cardigan. 'Perfect! Classy and simple.' She pulled out a pair of black skinny jeans and some white ballerina slippers. After getting dressed she ran back into the bathroom and stared at her hair. The grabbed her brush and tried to tame the beast as best she could. Hilary left her hair to air-dry since she had a natural bounce to her hair and she always screwed it up with the curling iron.

She opened the cupboard under the sink and pulled out her makeup back, thinking that since today was a special occasion, why not add a few touches? She wore it lightly, careful not to pack it on like every other girl seemed to do. Just a bit of mascara and lip gloss was all she needed- she didn't need much considering she had natural beauty whether she realized it or not. She smiled in the mirror satisfied with her appearance until she moved her hair off her shoulders and saw the bruise still protruding from her neck. 'Not good.'

She lifted her right hand and placed her palm on the mark, wincing from contact. It was still really sore and was impossible to go unnoticed. 'Makeup definitely won't work for this.' She searched through the bathroom cupboards until she saw the first aid kit. Pulling out a large bandage, she pressed it on the mark in attempt to hide it. She still had a cut across her cheek but that can be put off as just a scratch from a tree branch. She smiled to herself once more in the mirror before she ran off to the dojo to meet with the others. She couldn't lie; she was scared that Kai would be there. Hilary wasn't sure of what she could or would say to him about what happened. She was so nervous to see him.

Hilary shook her head, 'This is no time to be a coward!'

She walked down the stairs of her empty house and went into the kitchen. She pulled down some animal crackers from the cupboard before she took her leave- 'Can't perform on an empty stomach!'

Glancing up at the clock above the table, she stuffed her snacks into her mouth and ran out the door. 'Shit, I'm late!' She jogged her way down the street, being careful not to trip over her own two feet. When she reached the dojo everyone was standing outside seemingly waiting for her to arrive.

"You're late!" Tyson yelled, pointing his finger at her. "Five laps for you!"

Hilary rolled her eyes, "Ha ha, very funny Tyson. Sorry I had to find something to eat."

"Well you could have moved a little faster 'cause w-"

"You look beautiful, Hilly." She shifted her eyes from Tyson to Minori who was now standing in front of her. She lightly blushed from the compliment and lowered her head in embarrassment.

"Thank you, it's not much."

"It's more than enough." He grinned at her being fully aware of her humiliation. It wasn't his fault that he calls it as he sees it.

"Yeah, yeah, she looks awesome. Now can we go?" Daichi whined and interrupted the moment. Not that Hilary minded though, she would have been fine with any way out of it. She never liked being complimented- it just didn't go well with her. No matter who was saying it or what it was, she would always blush and lose her words.

"Prepare yourself, guys. I'm gonna kick all your asses!"

"You wish Tyson! I've got this in the bag!"

"Dream on, monkey boy. The only thing you have is a big mouth and a losing streak!"

"What did you say?"

"You heard me!"

The usual argument carried on between the two dummies as the group made their way to central downtown. On their walk they noticed there were a lot more people roaming the streets today. A majority of the stores were closed for the day so they could be a part of the contest. Hilary didn't think it would have been this big of a deal, but it's likely because the grand prize is huge.

"Woah…" The group stopped as Tyson gasped at the line in front of him. They weren't even on the street where the building was and the line was trailing at least two blocks away. Max whistled, "Damn, what a line-up. We should have left sooner."

Tyson turned his head and glared at Hilary, rage burning in his eyes. She giggled and put her hand behind her head- not her fault she had to look presentable.

They could hear music pumping from inside of the building and some people were dancing in line as they waited. "This place is really happenin' isn't it?"

"You got it, Minori. It's the hottest place in town!" Tyson pumped his fist in the air to the beat of the music, trying to teach Daichi how to keep a beat. Kenny, on the other hand, wasn't as excited. He was shivering in fear- the kid was probably going to have a heart attack.

"You'll be fine Kenny," Hilary reassured her friend, "It's gonna be a breeze!"

"I-I….I hope you're right, Hilary." Poor, poor Kenny. He was freaking out before they could even see the building.

"Hey guys!" They turned their heads to see Hajime waving over to them as he approached their group. Girls surrounded them began screaming and running over to Hajime shouting out their usual disturbing things.

"Oh my god have my babies!"

"You're so cute!"

"Can I have a picture with you?"

"Sorry, I don't want kids," he flashed his beautiful teeth and their hearts melted. Half the girls screamed louder and the other half practically dropped to the floor. "But a picture would be fine."

After Hajime took his pictures with the girls he excused himself and pushed by them. "Why are you all waiting in line?" He asked, looking at Hilary in particular. "Hilary, you look stunning today."

"Just like she does every other day," Minori said defensively, knowing that Hajime was more about the plastic Barbie's than the real deal. Sure he knew that Hajime had feelings for Hilary but he knew how she would have taken that; probably would have thought he meant she was only beautiful when she got all dressed up. "We're waiting to get in the building."

Hajime blinked in confusion, "Uh… you guys do realize that you already signed in when you came to watch my practice the other day, right?"

"WHAT?" Tyson shrieked, "We've been standing out here for no reason?"

"Basically."

"Argh! Alright, let's go!" He jumped out of the line and ran up to the front doors, his team running along behind him. The guards were standing outside this time and gave Daichi a glare as he walked past them.

"Ah, heh- hey guys," he nervously waved and took off inside.

They entered the large lobby area and the room was jam packed with people. They were all mingling with one another and rehearsing for their spotlight.

"Come this way." The Blade Breakers followed Hajime to a spot in a far corner next to a sign that said 'Stage One'.

"We've placed you guys in the order that we seemed fit. Between you guys, Daichi will be up first, then Tyson, Kenny, Ray, Max, Hilary, and then Kai." Hajime scanned the group, inwardly smiling to himself when he didn't see the phoenix. "Where's your friend? Was he too scared to show up?"

"Eh, well knowing Kai," Tyson began, putting his arms behind his head, "He's off doing his own thing. He'll show up eventually."

"Great. Anyways, things will begin in an hour so I suggest you all prepare yourselves. Good luck." Hajime walked off in the opposite direction and over to a large table with seven seats behind it. His cold tone didn't go unnoticed by Ray or Minori- they knew something was up.

"So is anyone as nervous as I am?" Kenny stuttered, hoping he wasn't the only one.

"Chief you'll do great. At least you're not first!" Tyson laughed as he looked over at the monkey.

Daichi stiffened when Tyson said it. He didn't really register that he was going to be first- he was hoping for at least second, maybe even fifteenth. The group laughed at Daichi as he began rubbing his hands through his hair and babbling to himself.

"Hey Hilly," Minori started, "Can I see the card Hajime gave you? I'll go talk to him about adding more to it now."

"Oh, yeah sure." She reached into her pocket and pulled it out- she figured it wouldn't be safe at home where everyone in her house had free access to it. She smiled as she handed it to her friend, watching him walk off.

Minori walked up to where his brother was sitting and sat on the table in front of him. "I have a favour to ask."

Hajime didn't bother looking up from what he was doing. "What?"

"Hilary needs some more money- at least two thousand."

"I already gave her all I have."

Minori rolled his eyes, "Don't be such a selfish prick, I know you're loaded now cough up some more."

Hajime glared up at Minori, "I told you I don't have anything else."

"Really, so why was the headline in the news about you likely becoming the second 'richest' teen in the world? You made over a million during your last concert."

"Yeah, exactly. _I _made over a million, not anyone else so it's staying with me."

Minori slammed his hand down on the table, "You're not going to help Hilary when she needs you most?"

"She doesn't need me, she has that idiot already!" Hajime pulled back into his seat and looked down at the table, scowling.

"So this is what it's all about. You're jealous of Kai, aren't you?"

Hajime stared back up at his brother, his glare intensified by the second. "I'm not jealous."

"Then why don't you like Kai?"

"Stop saying his name."

"Why can't I say Kai? I thought you weren't jealous of Kai. Especially when Hilary is with Ka-"

"OKAY!" Hajime stood to his feet, leaning on the table with his hands looking away from Minori, "I just hate him, okay?" He strode off toward the escalator and went upstairs.

"Geez, what a suck." Minori hopped off the table and went back over to the Blade Breakers to listen to them all rehearsing.

Hajime stomped into the dressing room and kicked the door shut. He continued his stomping up to the computer and dropped himself into the seat. Pulling himself closer to the desk, he signed onto his online banking and scanned through the numbers. He found the account that held Hilary's money and opened it up.

"Minori, how could you?" he spoke to himself, smiling sinisterly and a little bit insane, "I can't believe you spent all of Hilary's money on yourself. You're so selfish."

And he pressed delete.

Back downstairs the stage crew were setting up for the first performance that was taking place within the next twenty minutes. Hilary nervously played with her hands as she watched them prepare everything. 'This is it,' she thought to herself, 'If I don't make this cut then it's all over.'

Ray was watching Hilary intently, making sure she didn't lose her cool. The last thing he needed was for her to have a mental breakdown. He knew how nervous she was to make it to the next round- it's how he felt when he was competing for the world championship title. He put his arm around her shoulders and leaned down to her, "You're going to make it, Hilary."

She smiled up at her friend and nodded, "Yeah!"

"Alright everybody!" The announcer called out from the centre of the stage, "The first round of performances is about to begin!"

The crowd cheered out and the competitors went silent, mentally preparing themselves. Who knew that this could be so stressful?

"First up on stage one will be Tamaki Kishimoto!" A bleach blonde bimbo walked up on stage and strutted to where the announcer was. The crowd silenced as they watched her parade herself around trying to impress the world. She grabbed the microphone,

"Hey everyone!" she winked at the crowd and blew a kiss. "You suck!" shouted a boy within the crows, clearly not caring about her appearance. She rolled her eyes and flipped her hair,

"I bet you're all excited to hear me sing! So here goes!" She tapped her hand on her leg twice and the music played lightly in the background. The blurted out her lyrics and, literally, sounded like a croaking goose. She was off pitch, squeaky, and just plain horrible. Countless boos were heard from the crowd but she continued walking around the stage and throwing her hand in the air.

"She's horrible!" shouted Tyson to his team, trying to be heard over the squealing pig on stage.

"My ears are bleeding!" Daichi pressed his hands tightly to his ears trying to drown out the girl. She reached her final note and screeched into the microphone, piercing everyone's ears. She smiled to the silent crowd and took a bow. The announcer snatched the microphone out of her hands as quickly as he could, "Alright that was Tamaki everyone!"

Silence.

"Thank you, thank you! I know, I've left you all speechless!" And she took her leave off stage. Hajime took his seat back with the other judges- the band and the producers- and they all wrote down their scores for her.

"Thank goodness that's over," the announcer said in a low voice to the microphone, "Now, let's give it up for Daichi!"

"Ah, that's me!" he pointed to himself and looked up to the stage.

"Good luck Daichi!"

"Yeah man, you can do it!"

"You've definitely got that freak beaten!"

He smiled and jumped onto the stage, taking the microphone like said freak did. "Here goes!" The crowd quieted down as he began his song. Unfortunately for Daichi, singing genetics didn't run that well through the blood of monkeys. He, too, was off pitch and wasn't all that pleasant to listen to.

"At least it's better than the last one," someone in the crowd said as they clapped for Daichi. The crowd began to cheer him on to get him motivated. (AN: Don't really want to write out a song for all the guys… just the important ones!) He finished up his final line and the crowd clapped for him, shouting out how much better he was than the first performance. He jumped off the stage and landed between his group of friends.

"That was great, man!" Tyson held Daichi's head under his arm and ruffled up his hair.

Tyson was up next. Before the announcer could call him to the stage, Tyson was already up there and waving out to his fans and laughing. The Blade Breakers sweat-dropped; he lived for fame. Tyson's performance lasted only a minute because he couldn't come up with enough lyrics to make it last the required length. His excuse was that he was too busy preparing for the next championship match.

Next up was Kenny- we can all imagine how that went. He walked up to the stage, took the microphone, stared out into the silenced crowd that was waiting for him to sing, his glasses fogged up and he fell backwards. The crowd looked between each other and began to cheer for Kenny anyways, "Good try kid!" The paramedics showed up on stage and dragged Kenny off into the back.

Ray and Max's performances were definitely one hundred times better than the previous ones- they actually had a voice that didn't damage anyone's eardrums. Ray sang a calm, peaceful melody whereas Max was more modern and alternative.

"Alright, let's give it up for Max!" Max walked off the stage and toward Hilary, putting his hand on her shoulders, "Good luck, Hilary." She smiled nervously at her friend, feeling chills running through her entire body. Her fingertips began to tingle and she felt slightly light-headed. This was her first time being up in front of such a huge amount of people- they filled up even more than they did during the championship tournaments.

"Next up is the lovely Hilary Tatibana!" The announcer smiled and handed her the microphone and whispered to her, "Hopefully you're better than the first girl we had up here." He winked and moved to the side so the spotlight was only on her. Her palms began to sweat and she could feel her cheeks heating up. She brought the microphone close to her lips, "H-hi everyone. I'm really nervous so go easy on me." The crowd laughed and cheered loudly for her once more before the music began to play in the background. She closed her eyes, waiting for her cue. She took in a deep breath before she had to start. 'You can do this.'

_Seems like it was yesterday when I saw your face__  
><em>_You told me how proud you were but I walked away__  
><em>_If only I'd known what I know today_

_I would hold you in my arms__  
><em>_I would take the pain away__  
><em>_Thank you for all you've done__  
><em>_Forgive all your mistakes__  
><em>_There's nothing I wouldn't do__  
><em>_To hear your voice again__  
><em>_Sometimes I want to call you but I know you won't be there_

_I'm sorry for blaming you for everything I just couldn't do__  
><em>_And I've hurt myself by hurting you__  
><em>_Some days I feel broke inside but I won't admit__  
><em>_Sometimes I just want to hide 'cause it's you I miss__  
><em>_You know it's so hard to say goodbye when it comes to this_

The crowd was absolutely silent as they listened to her sing- it was almost angelic. The Blade Breakers stared in awe at their friend. They never knew that she had this kind of talent.

"She's amazing." Minori smiled at her, when she made eye contact with him.

The front doors of the building opened up and in walked Kai. He could care less about the people performing- he just wanted to get his over and done with and have everything back to the way it was before. He stood against the side wall and listened to the voice up on stage. He opened his eyes to see who it was and they widened. 'Hilary…'

_Would you tell me I was wrong?__  
><em>_Would you help me understand?__  
><em>_Are you looking down upon me?__  
><em>_Are you proud of who I am?__  
><em>_There's nothing I wouldn't do__  
><em>_To have just one more chance__  
><em>_To look into your eyes and see you looking back_

Her voice became slightly shaky as she tried to hold back her tears from falling. The song was a combination of how she felt towards Kai and how she had been feeling about her brother for so many years. She needed a way to get it all out and not have to keep it all inside. She closed her eyes a few times as she sang out certain notes and held her hand to her stomach to reach the octave she needed to.

Kai marvelled at her, listening to her delicate voice. He saw that she was fighting back the urge to burst into tears. He didn't know what to think or how to feel- he was mesmerized by her voice, more so than usual.

_I'm sorry for blaming you for everything I just couldn't do__  
><em>_And I've hurt myself__  
><em>_If I had just one more day, I would tell you how much that__  
><em>_I've missed you since you've been away_

_Oh, it's dangerous__  
><em>_It's so out of line to try to turn back time_

Kai looked at her closely and saw a bandage wrapped around her neck, as well as the cut on her face. He would have to ask her about that later. 'What the hell happened?'

_I'm sorry for blaming you for everything I just couldn't do__  
><em>_And I've hurt myself_

_By hurting you_

She trailed off her last note as the music slowly faded. She opened her eyes and looked out into her audience and the crowd went crazy. She smiled sweetly with tears in her eyes and bowed her head down. One tear managed to make its way down her face and over the cut on her cheek. She handed the microphone back to the announcer who stared at her in awe.

"And there you have it, folks! That was Miss Hilary Tatibana!"

She walked down the side steps of the stage and her friends lunged at her, congratulating her on a great performance. "Hilary I don't even know what to say! Why didn't you tell us you were so good?"

"Yeah, you actually have a talent!" Daichi was lucky she wasn't in the mood to pound him into the floor.

Max pulled Hilary into a friendly hug and went on about how he couldn't look away from her the entire time she was on stage. "Thanks guys!" She giggled as she wiped away the tear stain from her face and gave a big smile to her friends. It went a lot better than she had expected it to.

"Wow what a spectacular performance! Let's see if our next contestant can top that! Kai Hiwatari, you're up!"

Every single girl in the crowd screamed so loud it could have broken a glass. All attention was turned to the wall where he was standing and the spotlight shone on him. He opened his eyes, unfolded his arms and walked towards the stage. Like Hajime, Kai had an insane amount of fan-girls begging him to be the father of their children, take pictures, and other inappropriate things that cannot and will not be mentioned.

Kai made eye contact with Hajime and glared at him. If he wasn't on national television and didn't have so many eyes on him he would have made the punk eat ground. His eyes shifted down to his teammates as they cheered for him and called out things that were supposed to motivate him. Next his attention focused on Hilary who was staring up at him with sad eyes. He knew she felt bad, but she really shouldn't. He felt it was his job to make things right and be able to see her smile again. He saw Minori also looking up at him and nodded. There was something about Minori that made Kai not want to tear his throat out- the only thing he hated was that he was identical to Hajime.

The music began playing in the background and the crowd silenced themselves once more, waiting for him to begin. He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath,

_When she was young __  
><em>_She was living the dream __  
><em>_Worries are gone,__  
><em>_Nothing was wrong at all or so it seemed,__  
><em>_Reality stung __  
><em>_Whiskey bottle was dry, __  
><em>_Daddy would scream,__  
><em>_Cause he is diseased and haunted all the time,__  
><em>_Big girls don't cry__  
><em>_Big girls don't cry_

The crowd went wild as his trailed on his note, screaming and cheering him on._  
><em>_  
><em>_It goes on til something happens,__  
><em>_You gotta go and face it today,__  
><em>_When you're gone nothing matters,__  
><em>_You gotta stop running away asking "So what do you do?"__  
><em>_You gotta break through,__  
><em>_Make it on your own,__  
><em>_It goes on but I thought you should know,__  
><em>_You're not alone _

Kai looked down at Hilary as he belched out his line, hoping she realized it was about her. Hilary's mouth slightly opened as she listened to Kai sing. It all sounded so familiar; it was as if he were writing it about her. It was surprising enough that he had such an amazing voice, let alone that he was writing specially for her.

_When he was young __  
><em>_He was living the dream,__  
><em>_He has it all,__  
><em>_Nothing can stop him now or so it seemed,__  
><em>_Reality stung __  
><em>_Lost control of the wheel __  
><em>_It all went so fast can't remember the crash,__  
><em>_This all seems so unreal,__  
><em>_Tough guys still try__  
><em>_Tough guys still try_

The crowd went insane again. Kai was hitting every note in precision and was relating to the crowd. Every person could feel the emotion in his words and, for some, it brought back memories of their own.

_It goes on til something happens,__  
><em>_You gotta go and face it today,__  
><em>_When you're gone nothing matters,__  
><em>_You gotta stop running away asking "So what do you do?"__  
><em>_You gotta break through,__  
><em>_Make it on your own,__  
><em>_It goes on but I thought you should know,__  
><em>_You're not alone _

He turned his head and looked into Hilary's eyes, watching her looking at him bewildered. He smiled,

_There's a hand to hold,__  
><em>_You're not alone,__  
><em>_This pain gets old like,__  
><em>_Cracks in stone,__  
><em>_Just taking back control,__  
><em>_Taking back control_

_It goes on til something happens,__  
><em>_You gotta go and face it today,__  
><em>_When you're gone nothing matters,__  
><em>_You gotta stop running away asking "So what do you do?"__  
><em>_You gotta break through,__  
><em>_Make it on your own,__  
><em>_It goes on but I thought you should know,__  
><em>_You're not alone__  
><em>_You're not alone__  
><em>_You're not alone_

The crowd didn't even give Kai a second to breathe as they shouted out to him. He breathed heavily and handed the microphone back to the ecstatic announcer. Hajime didn't look as impressed as everyone else in the room as he let out a low growl, writing down Kai's score.

Kai's eyes didn't leave Hilary's as he walked down the steps and towards his team. They congratulated them like they did for Hilary and patted him on the back.

"Woah, Kai, that was stellar!" Tyson shouted at his friend, "When did you have talent?"

"Kai that was awesome man!" Ray gave Kai a light punch on the shoulder, surprised that he actually went up there and did it. But also because Ray wasn't stupid- he knew Kai wrote it for Hilary, everything added up and connected to one another.

"Let's give it up for Kai! Man, what talent these youngsters have!"

Kai went over and stood in front of Hilary, looking down at her smiling. She looked away from him, feeling shy about her upcoming apology. Before she could speak she felt his hand on top of her hand and playing with her hair. She looked up at him and he had an even bigger smile on his face, "Don't worry about it."

She returned his smile and lunged into his chest, hugging him tight. She was happy Kai had this sort of telepathy thing going for him because she would have made a fool of herself in front of him.

"That was one of the best performances. Good job, peacock." Kai looked up from Hilary to see Minori standing in front of him with his hands in his pockets. Kai smirked at him, letting go of Hilary. Minori held out his hand to Kai, and Kai took it in his, shaking it. He raised his eyebrow,

"Peacock?" Hilary giggled from under his chin and moved back so they were face to face, "It's a long story."

"Alright folks!" The announcer boomed from the centre of the stage, "Next up we have Kevin Baker!"

It took approximately another two hours before the first stage was wrapping up the final performance. "That concludes the performances for stage one! Stage two will commence in the next hour, so competitors prepare yourselves because there's a few acts that are gonna be tough to beat!"

Everyone in the crowd went outside for some fresh air before the next round began. The Blade Breakers, along with Minori, stepped outside into the sun. It was unusually bright today and the wind didn't seem as vicious as it usually was. Kai stood by Hilary's side as they took in the slight heat from the sun, stretching out their legs.

"Man, it's pretty cramped up in there with so many people." Hilary smiled at Kai, happy and relieved that things were alright again.

"You have a beautiful voice, Hilary." She blinked and a blush crept up to her cheeks again.

"Th-Thank you, Kai. It wasn't anything special though, I just wro-"

"You wrote out how you felt and it was perfect." Her smile grew bigger, "Thanks, Kai. It's thanks to you I was able to write it!" He smiled back at her.

"Happy to help."

"Hey Hilary," Minori called out and walked over to the duo, "Sorry to interrupt, but here's your card. I forgot to give it back." He pulled out the green card from his pocket and handed it back to her. "I wasn't able to convince him entirely, but I'm sure he'll come about."

He nodded at Kai before taking his leave, knowing that Kai was alright with him being around for Hilary. It was certainly a big change than how it was when they first encountered one another.

Hilary looked down at the card in her hands, "What's that?" She looked up as Kai questioned her and she gave him a wink.

"It's a secret." Kai lifted his eyebrow, he seemed to be doing that a lot lately. "And what's so secretive about it?"

"I can't tell you!"

Kai smirked as he started to mock Hilary, "Secrets don't make friends, you know."

"I don't need friends." She mocked right back, making his smirk grow into a smile. He chuckled to himself- he missed being around her, even if it was only a day or two.

Tamaki came walking out of the building, still flipping her hair over her shoulders and strutting like she owned everything. She strode right up to Kai, giving Hilary a dirty look.

"Well hello there, handsome." She batted her eyes, hoping he would gawk at her. Instead, Kai remained in his same position with his eyes shut. He could care less about any girl that wasn't Hilary.

"You have quite the voice. Maybe we should sing together during the semi-finals."

"Get out of here, hag. You can't sing." Hilary laughed at Daichi's comment; it was the best thing he's said all day.

"And just what are _you _laughing about?" She eyed Hilary down, taking in her outfit and how little makeup she was wearing. "Hah, only ugly girls don't wear makeup. And you can't even sing, loser. So anyways Kai, how about it?"

He opened his eyes and glared at the snobby nasty standing in front of him. If she wasn't a girl, he would have introduced her face to the curb. He walked over to Hilary and put his arm around her waist,

"I'm with Hilary for a duet. You can go drown yourself now."

The idiot huffed and strutted herself right back into the building. Who did he think he was talking to her like that?

"What was that all about?" Ray asked as he stood beside Kai and Hilary. Kai shrugged his shoulders and took his arm back from Hilary. Hilary giggled to herself,

"Kai has an unwanted admirer."

"Eh, she's ugly anyway," came Minori as he made his way back over to them. "Hilary, do you want to go get them now?"

She looked at her friend questioningly and blinked a few times, trying to think of what he was talking about. Minori held out his arms to his side and swayed back and forth like a plane.

"Oh! Yeah, sure! I'll be right back guys!" Minori sighed to himself before following behind Hilary.

"O-okay… what was that all about?" asked Max, looking behind him and seeing Kenny's ambulance parked outside the building.

"Who knows," Tyson shrugged, "She's just weird. Let's see how Kenny's doing."

They all nodded in agreement and went over to where Kenny was sitting in the back of an ambulance holding an icepack to the back of his head. Kai stayed back with Ray- he knew something that Kai needed to figure out. "Ray."

"The bandages, right?" Kai nodded, "It's not as bad as it was before." Kai folded his arms over his chest, turning to face Ray and waited for him to continue.

"Listen Kai, I'm not supposed to share anything with you about it." Kai's eyes narrowed, waiting for a real answer. "Sorry, Hilary doesn't want me to."

"What happened?" Kai demanded. He was getting worried about how little he knew of it.

"Don't let her find out I told you," Ray began, "And don't go crazy."

Kai rolled his eyes. "When you were gone her dad lost control. He threw a plate at her and it cut her face, and when she didn't listen to him he strangled her and bruised her arm."

Kai's mouth dropped- why didn't she tell him? She knew he would have been there right away if she needed him for anything, so why didn't she say anything?

"She didn't want you to worry about her so she left it alone."

"This is a big deal, Ray." He nodded, "Yeah I know that, but it's her life and her decisions. I can't interfere with any of it."

"I can."

* * *

><p>Hilary and Minori pushed through everyone in the street to find their way to the closest traveling agency. (AN: They now have an official building for it.) After what seemed like hours- but was really only ten minutes- they found one and went inside. Hilary walked up to the main desk where a short man with a moustache stood greeting her. "Hello young people, what are you looking for?"<p>

"Hello sir, I'm looking to buy two flight tickets to Russia for the week of November 18th." Hilary smiled sweetly at the man as his gazed moved between her and Minori.

"Ah, I see. Well would you like the couple's package? It provides you with a honeymoon suite and-"

The man carried on about the couple's deal and Hilary's face flushed red. 'He thinks Minori and I are a couple!'

"No thanks," Minori interrupted the man, "She asked for two tickets to Russia. She doesn't want any packages. Just tickets."

The man's back stiffened in annoyance from being rudely cut off. "Fine. One moment." He turned around and opened up the black drawers that were set behind him. He rummaged through until he pulled out two tickets. "Moscow, right?"

"Y-yes," Hilary stammered, still feeling a little uneasy from the man's assumption.

"Here you go little lady. Two tickets to Moscow, Russia. You depart on the 18th and you will arrive back here in Bakuten two weeks from then. Will that be cash or charge?"

Hilary pulled out her bank card and placed it in the small machine. She pressed to pay with her cheque account that her friends had already filled up with their money.

"Thank you very much, enjoy your trip!" The man smiled at Hilary and glared at Minori as they retreated from the counter.

"This is so perfect!" Hilary smiled and held the tickets close to her body, "I hope he likes it!"

"I'm sure he's going to love it."

"Oh! I should transfer the money from Hajime's card into my account so that it's there and I don't have to worry about it anymore." She smiled and skipped over to the nearest instant teller (AN: I think that's what they're called… you know, those outdoor bank machines). She placed Hajime's card inside the slot and pushed the button to withdraw the money.

"Insufficient funds." The machine spit the card out and the screen went blank again. Hilary took the card and looked at it.

"Well that's strange." She placed it back inside and pressed the buttons again.

"Is it not working?" Minori asked, moving in closer to see what she was doing.

"It said that there were insufficient funds. I'm trying again- the cold must have messed up the machine."

She looked closely at the screen and her eyes widened. The fifteen thousand that Hajime said he set aside for her was gone. There wasn't even a penny left in the account.

"It's empty."

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

I didn't think it would take me about a week to update- I'm sorry! As I write, I'm beginning to hate Hajime more and more haha. He's such an ass!

Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter! I was thinking of ending the story within the next few chapters until this brilliant mind of mind (not) came up with a better conclusion to the entire thing. It may turn out to be a pretty damn long story… So please don't mind that!

I have my second exam today at 7pm eep! First of all: SHITTY time for an exam if I do say so myself. Smh.

Song Hilary used:

Hurt – Christina Aguilera

Song Kai used:

Not Alone – Before Their Eyes

The song I chose for Kai is my personal favourite- it's so inspirational and really hits the heart, y'know? It's hard to explain it, but it's like a good kick in the butt for me when things get rough.

Anyway! I'll be updating again soon :)

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	12. Perfect Team

I've received quite a few emails asking about what I look like… I'd like to point out that my appearance is not relevant whatsoever to my stories. Be happy I'm not exposing your ignorance. If it's such a big concern then I'll make my avatar picture or whatever one of me.

In my babble at the bottom of my last chapter I meant "mind of mine" lol don't judge.

There may be a fight in this chapter but I'm not too sure yet – maybe the next one!

Not in the mood to carry on with today's nonsense, so on with the fic.

* * *

><p>Chapter 12:<p>

"What do you mean it's empty?" Minori shoved Hilary aside and looked at the screen in front of him flashing a great big mocking zero. That couldn't be right; Hajime promised her that the money was in there.

'Hajime,' Minori cursed to himself. She shouldn't have trusted his brother with something like this. Hajime has been a jerk ever since he's been back. 'No matter what happens, it always leads back to him.'

"I'll be back," Minori said firmly as he began to walk away from her. "W-wait!" Hilary grabbed onto his wrist, refusing to let him go without an answer. He spun around and saw the tremendous amount of hurt in her eyes- she was betrayed again.

"I'm going to talk to my brother."

"I don't understand how there's nothing in there… I didn't even use it, and nobody else has had it but Hajime and-" she paused for a moment, thinking the one thing Minori wished she didn't. "You."

"What? You think I did it?" She stared up at him, her mind twisting and turning. There was a slight chance that it was him because he did take it, and he did need the money. "You really think I would do that to you?"

"Well Minori, there's only been three people that had it and Hajime said he had it in there for me. I don't think he would be the one to take it back."

'She's honestly fallen for his manipulative bullshit.' "You seriously don't think that he had anything to do with it?"

"The card was full when I checked it the other day- but now after you've had it, it's suddenly gone."

Minori growled and snatched his hand back away from Hilary. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You're delusional. Get back to me when you have your facts straight."

He turned back around and stormed off in the direction of the Blade breakers, leaving Hilary alone staring at his back. It was beyond him that she thought he was a thief. He thought she'd know he would do anything and everything for her, not the opposite. 'Now she's probably gonna go and tell her friends that it was me and Kai-' he shivered at the thought, 'Well my face will definitely be rearranged.'

He walked back up to the group and they were the only ones still outside.

"What took you so long?" shouted Tyson, beginning to shiver from the cold, "We've been waiting for you! The next round's about to start and- hey, where's Hilary?"

"She's off doing her own thing, she'll be back eventually." Minori shot a glance over at Kai and saw exactly what he was expecting. Kai was eyeing him down, he knew something had happened. Minori averted his eyes away and followed the rest of the guys as they made their way back into the building. Kai stared blankly ahead of him as he watched him team go inside. He stayed behind to wait for Hilary; he couldn't just abandon her and leave her by herself.

He stood outside the doors in the cold for half an hour, watching cars drive by and people passing along the sidewalk. He looked up and down the street but didn't see any sign of the girl he was waiting for. 'Where the hell is she?' Maybe she was off doing some shopping. Or maybe she met some of her old school friends and was catching up. 'Pfft yeah right.' Whatever it was she was doing, he hoped she was alright. Kai wanted to look around the streets to see if he could find her but he couldn't risk having Hilary come back and him not be there.

Another half hour passed by. The wind was getting colder and Kai was becoming impatient- and worried. She should have been there by now. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialled her number, waiting for her to pick up.

_Ring. Ring….Ring. Hey this is Hilary-_

'Yes!' "Hilary where are y-"

_Sorry I can't come to my phone right now. Leave a message and I'll call you as soon as I can!_

"Dammit!" Kai cursed as he hung up his phone. The answering machine wasn't the one he wanted to talk to right now. She shouldn't be doing this- she wasn't allowed to worry him. She wasn't allowed to make him feel uneasy, and she definitely wasn't allowed to make him stand out in the cold waiting for her lazy ass to show up!

Kai groaned and looked to his left down the street- nothing. He then looked to his right and- 'Hilary!' He knew it was her by her chocolate hair and jacket she was wearing. She was making her way towards him with her head down and was hugging herself as the wind picked up around her. He dropped his arms from their folded position and waited for her to get close enough so he could lecture her.

"Hilary, I've been waiting for you for over an hour. Where the hell have you been?"

Hilary lifted her head and looked at him, her eyes glistening. She looked as though she had been crying. She smiled softly at him, recognizing the concern in his voice.

"I'm sorry for worrying you. I just had to go pick something up." She walked passed him and towards the entrance doors.

"Are you alright?" She paused at Kai's words- she wasn't alright.

Turning around she smiled at him once more, "Yeah I'm fine." Lie. "Come on, we're already late."

Kai was tempted to roll his eyes and accuse her of being the reason why 'they' were late. 'I'll never understand women.'

He followed her back inside, still trying to figure out what could have happened. It could have been a lot of things: someone hurt her feelings, she fell, she got lost, Minori could have said something. It better not have been Minori- Kai would have to prepare a murder wish for the other twin as well if that were the case. There was nothing more he detested than knowing Hilary was faking her happiness. She abruptly stopped walking, causing Kai to bump into her.

"Hilary watch it." No response. He moved so he was beside her and followed her gaze up to the stage. Hajime stood there with a big smile on his face as he was announcing the winners of block two. Kai growled as Hajime made eye contact with him and even winked at the blader. Hajime smirked and turned back to his audience, patiently waiting for the rest of his announcement.

"So that's it for the second round. I have to admit I'm a little disappointed after seeing the performances of the first part- but let's hope the third will be a little more… prepared. There was, unfortunately, only one selected member of round two. Congratulations to Riku- hands down the most talented male performance we've had today!" He handed the microphone over to Riku and clapped his hands along with the crowd. This Riku character looked as average as they get. He had dark brown hair and dark brown eyes, wearing jeans and a sweater. He seemed confident enough as he began to speak,

"Uh, thanks." He gave the microphone back to Hajime and walked off stage. The crowd laughed and continued to clap for him.

"What a joke."

Hilary giggled at Kai's remark- it was ironic because it's something Kai would have said or done.

"And now the results of the first session," Hajime said, shuffling the papers in his hand. "There were three performances that we considered the best out of all the auditions. My fellow judges and I didn't necessarily agree on one in particular, but we found these top people to have the most potential."

The crowd silenced as they watched Hajime pause for dramatic effect. Hilary saw Tyson and the other's all staring up at the stage in anticipation. "Third place went to Ms. Tamaki!"

"SHE WAS HORRIBLE!"

"YEAH SHE DOESN'T DESERVE IT!"

"WHAT ABOUT MEEE!~" Oh Daichi…

The crowd clearly wasn't in favour of Tamaki making a spot in the competition. Shouts and disapprovals surrounded the room as the audience rejected the judge's decision.

"Listen, I said we all didn't agree on this- but I also said these were the people with potential." Hajime stated, trying to settle the crowd down. Tamaki's shrieks were heard from the other side of the room as she jumped up and down and tried to hug the person next to her, only to be pushed away.

"In second," Hajime continued, "Is, surprisingly, Kai Hiwatari."

The response from everyone was the complete opposite of what it was ten seconds ago. People were congratulating him and cheering. Kai stood beside Hilary with his arms folded over his chest- he couldn't care less.

"Congratulations, Kai!" Hilary beamed up at him and pulled on his left arm, trying to untangle his fold. "I'm so happy you made it!" He opened his left eye to show his acknowledgement of her and shut it again.

"Hn." He couldn't smile at her like he would when they were alone. Not in front of a crowd like this.

"Yeah, it's wonderful. Yippee. Anyways," Hajime rolled his eyes and, by his tone, was not pleased with Kai making it. "Now, first was an easy pick. This talented young lady took all of our breaths away and has the natural vibe of a star. She was a tough act to follow up but it was unanimous when we had to decide. The winner of the first round goes to-" Hilary held her hands tightly together and closed her eyes, silently praying to herself. She needed this; she needed to make it to the final round and beat all her competitors. She held her breath as she waited for Hajime to continue. She felt a warm hand grab onto her entwined fingers and she looked up to see Kai smiling down at her. In his own way he was reassuring her that she definitely was going to join him in the finals. There was no way she couldn't make it, right? The crowd loved her as much as they loved Kai, and he was amazing. Then again they picked Tamaki too… She snapped out of her thoughts as Hajime cleared his throat to continue, causing her to clasp her hands around Kai's.

"Ms. Hilary Tatibana!"

"AHHH!" Hilary's smile was bigger than ever as the spotlight focused on her. She jumped up and down and hugged Kai. "I did it!" She pulled away from him, still hanging onto his hand with hers and she waved out to the crowd. They all smiled and cheered for her, happy that she was chosen.

The Blade Breakers rushed over to Hilary and circled around her as they did before.

"Congrats, Hil!"

"Yeah Hilary, you deserve this!"

"I'm so proud of you!" Ray pulled her away from Kai and hugged her close. He knew how important this was to her and he was happy that she made it through, even though he didn't.

She was still smiling brightly as she turned her attention towards Hajime who was making his way down the stage steps. He brought himself in front of her and, he too, pulled her into a hug. It lasted a lot longer than it needed to, in Kai's opinion. He snarled at Hajime as the star smiled at him while holding Hilary in his embrace. He wasn't Charlie Sheen, but he knew that he was winning. (AN: LOL I had to!)

He pulled away from Hilary, bringing the microphone to his lips once more. "Tomorrow will be the following two rounds, and the day after – which is Halloween, might I add – will be duets performed by our winners. Each of them will pair up with another and prepare an original song together, later singing it to the rest of us. I suggest that the winners from both round one and two pair up so you can get a head start. Thank you all for coming and have a good night!"

He flicked the microphone off and tossed it to one of the stage crew members. He turned his attention back down to Hilary only to find that her attention was focused elsewhere. She was too busy chatting with Kai to notice that Hajime was ready to talk to her. 'The ignorance.'

"Hilary." No reply from her- Hajime growled. "Hilary." He spoke in a louder, more demanding tone, only to be ignored again. "HILARY!"

She quickly spun herself around, shocked by how angry Hajime sounded. "Y-yes?"

Hajime spoke like an enraged dog, lifting part of his lip, "Congratulations on making it. Would you like to join me for dinner to celebrate?"

She looked at Hajime, then back at Kai, and once more at Hajime. "I'm sorry, but I can't. Kai and I are going back home to get ready for the next part of the contest. Besides, I don't have the money to go."

"What do you mean going home? Do you suddenly live together?"

Hilary's lips slightly parted, taken back by what he said. What was with him? This wasn't like Hajime at all. Hajime lowered his head so he was looking at her shoes and put his hand on his head,

"Sorry, this whole thing is getting to me. I'll pay for dinner, it's alright."

"Well actually," Hilary started, unsure if she should continue with her thought, "I wanted to talk to you about something concerning money. Can we talk in private for a minute?"

"Anything you can say between us can be said right here with everyone around."

Before Kai could strangle Hajime, Ray stepped in. Ray's voice sounded almost mean- quite similar to Kai's when he was pissed. "What's with the attitude? Don't be so rude to Hilary, she was just asking you something."

"Nothing." Hajime shrugged, "I don't find it fair that she may have to keep secrets from you. You're all friends here, aren't you?"

If Hilary wasn't as oblivious as she currently was, a little red flag would be waving in her head right now.

"Well yeah, but-"

"If you can tell it to one, you can tell it to all."

"Calm down, Shakespeare," Kai spoke up, "She-"

"Kai, it's alright. He's right, it's only fair that you all hear it." Her eyes remained on Hajime and her friends in front of her, not turning to look at Kai.

"Whatever. I'll be outside- I don't need to hear what's not meant for me." Kai spun on his heel, digging his hands into his pockets. Sure that might have not been necessary but if she didn't want him to hear something, then he wasn't going to listen.

Hilary finally looked over at Kai as he made his way to the front doors. She smiled at him, realizing that he was being respectful of her original decision. 'What a gentleman.'

"Well, what is it Hilary?" Hajime stood with his arms folded over his chest, waiting patiently for her to answer. Something was wrong with him- this isn't who he was at all.

"I don't have the money you gave me." She lowered her eyes to the floor, embarrassed to look into anyone's eyes.

"What are you talking about? Did you lose everything we gave you?"

She shook her head, "No, not all of it. Just Hajime's share."

The boys couldn't believe what they were hearing. The fifteen grand Hajime gave to Hilary to help her father was gone. This couldn't be right;

"It was on a bank card so nobody should have been able to access it."

Hilary turned her attention to Max as he spoke. He had an excellent point- it should all still be there. "Nobody could have taken it unless they knew the PIN for the card."

"Yeah, Max is right," Tyson stepped in, "And you and Hajime were the only ones with access to it." Tyson shot a glare over at Hajime. He was starting to dislike the star more and more as he spent more time around him. There was something about him that didn't feel right to Tyson.

"Asides from Hilary and myself, Minori was the only other one."

"Did he know your access code?" Hajime shrugged his shoulders, trying to keep his cool and progress with his lie.

"We're twins, you know. He could have easily figured it out."

"Minori wouldn't do something like that though!" Tyson made his hand into a fist, defending his new friend, "Even I know he doesn't have the heart to do that to Hilary."

"Well who else could it have been, then? Maybe your friend Kai since he took off so suddenly. I say it's due to guilty conscience."

"No!" Hilary shouted at Hajime, taking him by surprise. "Kai would never do something like that and he doesn't even know about it."

"I'm just throwing out options here. No need to snap at me."

"Well what are we going to do?" Ray continued, "Hilary needed that share of money- now she's fifteen thousand in the hole."

"Let's have a car wash!" Everyone sweat-dropped. Tyson rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah, Daichi, good plan. Let's get in bikinis and wash cars in the MIDDLE OF FALL!"

"It was just an idea!"

"It was a stupid one!"

"You're a stupid one!"

"That didn't even make sense!"

"Neither does the fact that you're the world chimp!"

"That's it!" Tyson growled and raised his fist in the air, chasing Daichi around.

Ignoring the two behind them, Ray started once more. "We could always ask for donations- like from other hospitals and charities."

"Yeah, maybe," Hilary agreed slowly, thinking of the option, "They usually help support other hospitals and their patients, right?"

"Wrong." Hajime stated in a cruel tone Ray snarled at the punk- it was like he didn't want to help Hilary at all. 'Heartless bastard.'

"Sorry but it's true, outsider companies don't help local hospitals. There's no chance of them offering anything."

Hilary's head lowered, her hair covering her watery eyes. "T-then what am I going to do?"

"It's alright, Hilary. We'll think of something." Hajime wrapped his arms around Hilary in a fake attempt to comfort her. Hilary, unbeknownst to his put-on carrying exterior, hugged him back lightly, leaving her arms loosely around him. Hajime wasn't satisfied with the way she held him and pulled her in closer, trying to get her to hug him 'properly'.

Her arms stayed in place as they were- it didn't feel right to hug him any other way. Even though it wasn't obvious to her, her mind picked up his odd behaviour. Hajime was changing in a way that she didn't even understand.

"What about the profit you're making from this contest?"

Good shot, Ray. Pierced him right in the stomach with that one. Hajime let go of Hilary and turned to the neko-jin.

"Sorry but it's not under my name- the contract is signed by the producer." Lie.

"Are you sure? Because when we were filling out the forms, I saw your signature at the top where it explains the details of the event."

"Each member took turns signing different forms. It's in all our contracts to sign for any events taking place that are involving the band." Lie.

Hajime waved them off as he turned his back to the Blade Breakers. "I'll do what I can to help- for now, prepare for the final round." He walked off, leaving an enraged group of people behind him.

"I hate him." That was probably the first time Max had ever been so negative towards something. Even the happy-go-lucky one of the bunch knew that Hajime was scum. Tyson had returned back to the group as Hajime left. He nodded to the blonde, "Yeah I know. He's nothing but trouble."

"Come on guys," here it comes- Hilary to the rescue. "It isn't his fault; it was probably just a misunderstanding. He was nice enough to offer me it in the first place so I'm sure I can find an alternative."

"Hilary, you don't get it," Ray began, "There's something about him that isn't right- we all feel it."

"Ray's right, Hil. You say that you've been friends for a lifetime, but by the looks of it, it's as if he doesn't care."

"How can you say that? I've known him for a long time and I know that he's changed a bit, but-" she balled her hands into fists. How could they judge her friend? "But I know he's a good person!"

"You're so naïve." Minori's voice entered the conversation, "You have no idea what he's up to."

"Of course you'd say that," Hilary narrowed her eyebrows, "You're trying to defend yourself."

Minori sighed and rolled his eyes, folding his arms over his chest. "You think I'm a pro-hacker, huh?"

"A-a what?"

"Nothing. Get it through your head that Hajime isn't the same person you grew up with- he's the same to me, too. He's trying to blind you from the truth. His actions are all out of jealousy and he wants you to himself."

'Wants me to myself?' Hilary thought, 'That's stupid.' "Hajime wouldn't think nonsense like that.

"How can you be sure of that?"

"How can you not be?" Minori closed his eyes and held in his laugh- go figure she'd be a smart ass right now.

"Believe what you want, Hilary. Even your friends know Hajime isn't 'all there' in the head. Just don't let yourself be fooled by him to the extent that you regret it."

"What could I possibly regret?" What was Minori going on about?

"I don't know- that's why I'm warning you now. I'm afraid that what Hajime has become might hurt you."

For once, Hilary had nothing to say back. She nodded her head at Minori, accepting his words. 'He may have a point though… Hajime has been acting really weird lately.'

"Let's get going back to the dojo," Tyson ended the silence that filled the group. "You need to get started for your next performance, Hilary! Are you excited? Who will you pick to be your partner?"

Hilary's eyes met Tyson's, "Yeah, I am excited but a little nervous at the same time. And I'm not too sure who I'll partner up wi-"

"Kai will do it." Oh Ray, you intelligent little kitty cat.

"Are you sure he would want to? Maybe he'd prefer Tamaki or that guy from the other stage."

The team laughed at her, including Minori. "Hilary you're such a joker!"

"I don't get what's so funny, Tyson."

"Nothing, Hilary," Ray continued, "Trust me, Kai will be fine with you as a partner. Speaking of Kai- where did he go?"

"Let's go find Mr. Grumpy and drag him back to the dojo with us."

The group walked outside to find Kai leaning against the side of the building in his usual stance. His eyes were shut, arms folded, and head facing towards the ground. As he heard them approach him, he lifted up his head to find Hilary being the first to run over. Kai smiled to himself- this girl was amazing. She slowed down as she neared him, looking up in his eyes and smiling.

"Hey Kai, I have a question."

Kai lifted himself off the wall so he was standing flat on his feet, arms still folded. "Mhm?"

"Well…" she trailed off, thinking of how she could ask him. It shouldn't be all that hard since they knew each other for so long, right? And, already, they've been through quite a bit together, right?

"Umm, well- would you like to be my partner for the duet?"

"You still have that song we wrote together?"

"Yeah?"

"Then we're all set."

"So… Was that a yes?" Kai chuckled.

"Yes, that was a yes."

Hilary beamed up at the boy in front of her. 'As if she should be surprised,' Kai thought to himself. He figured that by Hilary should have realized his feelings for her and that he would do anything she wanted him to- hell, he even told her!

"Do you want to go rehearse at Tyson's doj-"

"I was thinking of going back home, actually. It's been a long day." Or rather, a long time away from Hilary. She looked up at him questioningly, but decided to go along.

"Alright," she turned her attention to her friends, "Sorry guys, but we're gonna head home for the night. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow!"

Hilary led the way down the street and Kai followed close behind. Tyson turned to Ray with a sly smirk on his face, "What do you think they'll do tonight?"

Ray playfully hit Tyson in the head for saying such a thing- even though he was somewhat curious himself. "Kai wouldn't do that to her unless he knew how she felt."

"And what if she was in the mood?"

"Come on Tyson," Max joined in with their conversation, "You know Kai better than that. And Hilary isn't an easy girl."

"Hey guys!" The group turned their heads to see Kenny running towards them, waving his hand in the air. "You can't leave me here!"

"Haha, sorry Chief," Tyson laughed, putting his hand behind his head.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Kai and Hilary shortly arrived back at her home. Not hearing any sound from the inside, Kai felt worried. "Hilary, why don't I hear barking?"<p>

Hilary giggled to herself, "My brother came and took Pochie. Don't worry, he's in safe hands."

It was cute how much Kai cared for the little puppy- it really showed his sensitive side that she never knew existed. Kai was different from anyone else she had ever met, and she wanted to get to know more and more about him. 'Oh!'

"Kai!" she asked as she shut the door behind him, leaning against it, "You haven't told me some things about you in a pretty long time! What are we at, umm-" she looked up at the ceiling and placed a finger on her chin trying to recall how many he owed her. "I think about nine things!"

Kai turned from her and made his way to the couch, slumping down in it. "I don't even know nine things about myself."

Hilary followed to where he was sitting with her hands folded behind her back. She leant down so they were face to face, "Well get thinkin' mister!"

Kai leaned his forehead against her lazily, keeping his eyes half open. "No."

Hilary pulled herself back up, sighing dramatically. "Oh come on, Kai!"

He leaned himself back against the couch, laying his head on the back of it and staring up at the ceiling. "Do I have to?"

"Yes." She smiled at him waiting anxiously for a response.

"Fine. Let's see-" he thought to himself for a while, trying to think of what he could tell her. "I'm not afraid of anything."

Hilary paused… 1, 2…3… And burst out laughing. "Yeah, alright tough guy."

"It's true." Kai sat up from his spot on the couch and glared at her. He was Kai Hiwatari, of course he wasn't afraid of anything.

"Alright, alright. Tell me something that's a little more believable."

Still glaring at her, he mumbled under his breath, "I hate the taste of broccoli."

Now she was laughing even harder. "Really?" She forced out between fits of giggles, "Kai, you're like a child."

Kai, however, didn't see how this was funny at all. She wanted him to tell her things, yet here she was criticising the poor guy. "Shut up, I've never liked it."

"Hehe, sorry. Alright, next!"

"There is no next."

Hilary pouted, "What? Why not?"

"I'm tired of listening to you laugh." It took Hilary a moment before it hit her. She took a seat beside Kai on the couch and poked his arm with her index finger, "Are you embarrassed that I'm making fun of you?"

Kai snuffed his nose into the air and turned his back to her. Who knew he could be such a baby?

"Aww, Kai come on, I was only kidding. Well that's one more thing I know about you- I'm your bully."

"You are not!" Kai turned back around sharply and glared at the smiling girl in front of him.

"Also that you can't admit defeat. Tell me one more thing."

Before he answered, Kai really had to think about his answer. He didn't want to have her laughing and poking fun at him any longer. "I don't know- I've always wanted a son, I guess."

"Aww~! Kai that's so cute! What would you name him?" There, he did it again- said the wrong thing to the wrong person.

"I don't know. I don't have one."

"But that's adorable! Imagine a mini-you running around!" She giggled as she imagined a miniature Kai running around the house, laughing and smiling. Her thoughts trailed on to envisioning the little Kai running up to his daddy – normal sized Kai – and being scooped up into his arms. She imagined them playing outside together in the snow, learning how to beyblade, riding his bike for the first time. her thoughts brought her back to where she was currently sitting and pictured the little boy running up to her and asking to be lifted into her arms. She saw herself kissing the boy's forehead and playing with his hair. She then saw Kai coming in from work and saying to the boy, 'Leave your mother alone, she's busy.'

Hilary snapped out of her thoughts and blushed a deep crimson. 'What was I thinking?' She couldn't believe all the stuff that was just running through her head- it was ridiculous!

"Uh, you okay?" She shifted her eyes back to Kai and shook her head, trying to rid of her thoughts. "Y-yeah I'm fine! Heh heh!"

Kai raised his eyebrow, trying to figure out what she seemed so flustered about. He ignored it.

"Right. Want to get working on the song?"

Hilary smiled when she realized Kai wasn't going to question her any further. "Yeah, sure!"

She stood to her feet and made her way to the kitchen counter. She scanned the entire area until she found the sheet where their song was written. She skipped back to where he was sitting and sat back down next to him. He took the paper from her hands and read it over, smiling to himself. They really had done a good job together – they made a perfect team.

"How do you want to start this? I do some sections and you do the other?"

Hilary read through the lyrics after Kai placed the sheet on the table in front of them. "Hmm, yeah that should be fine." She pointed to one line of words, "So you can do these parts and I'll sort of mirror or echo them, okay?"

"Sure."

"And then, how about-" She read through them even more, pointing out several areas to Kai and asking him if he was alright with the set-up she had planned in her mind. Kai, like the easy going person he was, let her decide the arrangement of the performance and the way their voices will occasionally join during certain parts. It was much easier this way – he could lay back and let her figure everything out while he thought of his own plans.

"Is that okay, Kai?" Hilary was now facing him, waiting for his answer. He nodded his head even though he didn't hear a word she said. He was alright with anything she chose to do, as long as he was the one with her during it.

"Great!" she grinned at him, "Let's get started!"

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Here's probably the lamest chapter in the history of ever lol. I don't even know if "lamest" is a word, but it is right now. I found this chapter challenging to think of because it's more of a filter for everything else that's going to happen in the next one. If it's not all it's cut out to be for everyone else… then, I dunno, I apologize for the inconvenience!

My exams are finally done, yippee! Now I can enjoy my break and write non-stop for this story, muhaha!

Hopefully I'm keeping people interested! I would like to thank everyone for the Fav. Author and Story Alerts that were emailed to me haha I was a little surprised at first because;

One: I had no idea what it was about. I figured a bunch of people were reporting me or something :\

And two: I didn't think I was a favourite of anyone :D thanks for the confidence boost!

I should be updating pretty soon considering I'm confining myself to my house until Christmas. So excited for the holidays!

Oh, before I forget. I was asked by a few people to read over their stories and stuff. I'm sorry, but I can't do that. I'll be more than happy to read them as soon as I'm finished my own – reason being that I may subconsciously use your ideas in my own my accident. It just wouldn't be fair.

Alright, I guess that's enough of me for today!

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	13. Bunny

Hey everyone! I'm so sorry for my huge delay in updating :( I've just been overwhelmed with personal problems as well as getting my second semester in order. I'm currently working on the next chapter but since I feel bad, I decided to add in sort of a "filter" chapter to make up for it. I guess this will just further explain the relationship between our favourite chocolate-haired princess and tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum.

I hope everybody enjoyed their Christmas/New Years and had fantastic holidays!

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade.

On With The… Filter!

* * *

><p>Chapter 13:<p>

"Hajime!" Hilary gasped as she ran as fast as her little legs would take her through the field. "Wait up! You're running too fast!"

Hajime was a good one hundred steps away from her as he ran through the tall grass and flowers with her stuffed bunny. He originally wanted to play a simple game of tag but, of course, she refused and wanted to play with 'bunny' on the slide. There was no way he would be dragged to the park by his friend just to watch some stuffed toy get thrown up and down a slide.

Hajime turned his head back at Hilary as he ran and stuck his tongue out at her, waving bunny in the air.

"If you want him back you'll have to catch me!"

Little Hajime ran into the forested area behind the park and hid behind the closest tree he could find. He had been running around for a good twenty minutes and he couldn't take it anymore. He didn't think she would be able to last FIVE minutes, let alone this long. He held bunny's arm tightly in his hand as he hovered over his bent knees, resting his tired hands on his thighs. He breathed in and out heavily as he slowly lifted his head to peer around the tree. He inched his face around the brown bark he was hiding behind – "She's gone." He turned back around, closing his eyes and letting out a sigh of relief.

'_Crack' _

Hajime shot his eyes back open when he heard a tree branch breaking and carefully scanned the area that he was in. he took a step away from the tree so he could get a better look at what was around him. He heard a small giggle and as he attempted to turn around, he found himself flat on his back and a blur of pink sitting on top of him. Hajime winced in pain and he sat up with his elbows, glaring at the now clear pink image on top of him.

"Get off me!"

Hilary smiled evilly at him and used the palm of her hand to push his face back so his head was touching the ground. "Not until I get bunny!"

"Never!" He muffled. He couldn't see because of her hand but he knew she was using her other arm to reach for the stuffed animal. He flailed bunny in every direction in attempt to keep him away from her. Hilary huffed and removed her hand from his face so she could fold it over her chest.

"Why won't you give him back?" Her voice became shaky- she was about to cry.

"You spend too much time with it!" Ever since she got that new toy she hadn't been spending as much time with Hajime and his brother as she used to – and should have been. It wasn't her fault that she considered it to be her baby.

"So? I love my bunny! Now give him back!"

"No." Hajime closed his eyes and looked away from her.

"How come you're being so mean? You're supposed to be the nice one." Her eyes began to glisten as she held back her tears.

"I want you to play with me and not him." Hajime opened his eyes back up and slowly turned his head back to face her. He had a faint blush on his cheeks out of embarrassment from being jealous of the toy.

Hilary blinked her eyes and began to giggle. "Aww, are you jealous, Hime?"

(AN: For those who don't know, '_Hime' _means '_princess'._)

God, he hated when she called him that. He was, in no way, a princess of any sort.

"No I'm not and I'm not a princess. Can you get off me?"

"Oh!" Hilary realized she was still crushing his small body and rolled off of him, sitting on the ground.

"You can with bunny too if you want, Hime." She smiled sweetly at her friend as he stood to his feet dusting off his pants.

"I don't want to." He was pulling a suck because, even though he didn't want to admit it, he was jealous of bunny. He wanted bunny to be thrown away- even burned. It wasn't in his gentle nature to get so worked up over something so silly.

"But bunny is a lot of fu-"

"I said I don't want to!" Hajime cut Hilary off as she tried to get him to be a part of her and her new baby's lives. Why was he being such a sour puss?

"Okay, grumpy pants…"

"I am not grumpy!" Hajime spun around leaning toward her to emphasize his denial. His eyes were slightly widened and his hands were in fists. He didn't realize that he had dropped bunny on the ground.

"Whatever…." She paused for dramatic effect, "Grumpy pants!"

"AH! I AM NOT GRUMPY!" Hilary quickly swiped bunny up off the ground and made a run for it back to the park. Hajime lowered his fist that was shaking in the air at her and took off after her.

She made it all the way to her front lawn before she felt like she was going to collapse. Gorou was outside watering the flowers when his sister came running up to him. He bent down and opened his arms so she could run into them like she typically did- but no, not this time. Instead she flung herself around to the back of his body and hid behind her brother.

Gorou laughed to himself as he peered over his shoulder at his sister. "Hilary, what are you doing?"

"There he is!" She pointed her finger at the fuming Hajime as he ran across the street from the park over to them.

Gorou turned his attention to the boy and stared down at him quizzically as he stood in front of him. "Hey Hajime, what's up?" He smiled.

Hajime folded his arms trying to act tough. "Tell her to give me that _thing_!"

Gorou turned off the hose and dropped it to the ground before replying, "What thing?"

"That disgusting _thing _in her hands! I want it!"

"No!" Hilary's small voice came from behind her brother. She poked her head under Gorou's arm, "You can't have my bunny!"

Hajime looked up at Gorou pleading for his help, pointing at said _thing. _"Gorou come on, tell her to give up the stupid toy! All she does is carry it around and she doesn't want to play with me or Minny anymore!"

Gorou stepped aside so Hilary and Hajime could face one another. She hugged bunny tightly and slightly turned her body to the side to protect it from the enemy.

"Hilary, why don't you go play with your friends?"

She pouted and retorted, "No! I wanna play with bunny!"

"That's all you ever do!" Hajime shouted but was ignored by Gorou.

"Hilary, why don't you let me hold on to bunny for you while you go play?"

"I can't…" She trailed off, hugging bunny tighter.

"What? How come?"

Hilary glared at Hajime. "He said if he gets bunny he's gonna bite his arms off!"

Gorou laughed loudly at his sister- did she actually believe that would happen? Hajime smiled to himself, proud that his threat had sunk into her mind.

"Hilary!" The three turned their attention to the small voice coming from the house beside them. Minori approached them with a smile on his face, "Hey Gorou!" He looked at his twin, "Hey you."

Hajime furrowed his brows at his brother's comment. "Do you wanna come over for dinner? We're having dino-nuggets!" (AN: Chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs. Absolutely. Phenomenal.)

Hilary grinned up at her brother, "Can I go?"

"Of course."

"Alright bunny, let's go eat!"

"Bunny isn't invited." She looked at Minori with sad eyes as he denied the acceptance of bunny.

"How come bunny ca-"

"Because I made plans with bunny today," Gorou spoke, "He'll stay with me until you come home, okay? We're planning a surprise."

Hilary beamed at bunny and held him tight, "Aww, bunny! You're so sweet! Okay, you stay with Gu until I come back home!" She kissed bunny's nose and handed him to her brother.

"Take good care of him, okay?" Gorou smiled as he gently took bunny from Hilary.

"Always." He kissed her forehead and she raced the twins back to their house. Before Gorou could make it to the front door, he felt a tug on his pant leg. He looked down to see Minori's dark head of hair and big green eyes staring up at him.

"What can I do for you, little man?" he smiled and knelt down in front of Minori. The boy averted his eyes to the ground, looking embarrassed. "Well," he began, "Hilly's birthday is in two days, right?"

"Yes?"

"And-" he paused and a small blush rose to his cheeks, "I don't know what to get her. I want it to be special because she's special to me."

Now normally if a big brother heard these words from another male about their little sister they would be raging. Gorou, instead, smiled brightly at the boy in front of him and ruffled his hair. Even though Minori was so small, he understood the importance of having someone that means a lot to you.

"Tell ya what," Gorou started, "Since you were brave enough to tell me this, I'll help you out."

Minori's eyes moved to meet Gorou's, "R-really? You will?"

"Why wouldn't I?" The two smiled at one another. There's nobody Gorou would rather have than Minori crushing on his sister. Minori was mature for his young age and was the most confident kid he had ever known.

"What would you say about a teddy bear?"

"No way," Minori rejected Gorou's idea, "Having bunny is bad enough."

"Some candy?"

"She'll stay inside until it's all gone and wouldn't share!"

"Very true. How about some new shoes?"

"She kicks her shoes off when we get to the park and wears only socks."

"Then how about some socks?"

"Ew no! I'm not her grandma!" Gorou laughed at this statement- it was very true. Grandma gave them socks for every occasion.

"How about a necklace? She would wear it all the time and remember you."

Minori contemplated this offer – it wasn't so bad. She would probably wear it all the time, even if she was making mud pies or something at school. Still, it sounded like a great idea.

"I like it!"

"Perfect," Gorou stood up and smiled, "When would you like to go?"

"Well," Minori began, giggling nervously to himself, "I don't have any money. I spent all my allowance on my mom's coffee mug."

"How about this- I'll buy it for you but you have to promise to take good care of her and make sure she doesn't break your gift. Deal?"

"A-are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Wow! Thanks Gorou!" Minori jumped onto Hilary's brother and gave him a big hug. That couldn't be too hard; she wasn't that much of a handful.

* * *

><p>At Hilary's house: Present Day<p>

* * *

><p>"Hilary what the hell are you doing?" Kai walked into her room after hearing multiple thuds coming from the kitchen ceiling. He opened her door to find a mound of stuff covering the entire room – the floor wasn't visible.<p>

Hilary popped her head out from under the pile of clothes in the far right corner of the room.

"Just cleaning up!" She smiled as a sock slid down from the top of her head. Kai awkwardly moved his body around the piles of stuff in his way, trying not to step on anything.

"Here! Hold this for me?" Hilary had tucked herself back away behind her stack of clothes and tossed a pair of jeans behind her. They, conveniently, smacked Kai in the face and slid down to the floor. Kai's vein twitched (AN: You know… that red anime style one.) and raised his fist, "Why the hell are you doing this now?"

"Well I can't have company over when the place is a mess, right?" She somehow managed to make it to the other side of the room without Kai noticing as she popped her head up once more next to her closet.

"It was fine how it was before."

"No way, are you kidding? This is all just my closet!"

Kai sweat-dropped. How could one person fit so much into such a small space? "You couldn't have waited until the weeke-" He was cut short as she threw a volleyball behind her, and, once again, smacked Kai right in the face. He fell backward from the sudden impact and had a large, circular red mark in the center of his face. Before he could start yelling at her, she gasped.

"Oh my gosh, look!" From Kai's perspective, it looked like she literally flew across a pile of clothes that were labelled "donation" and dove into the closet. She flung a bunch of her belongings out of the closet until she got to what she was looking for.

"Kai, look!" He stood to his feet and cautiously made his way toward her, prepared to dodge anymore flying objects.

"What is it?" She was kneeling on the floor and hugging something in her arms. She turned her head to look up at him and smiled brightly at the boy in front of her. "I found bunny!"

Kai couldn't care less about some stupid stuffed animal she found hidden away in her closet.

"Aren't you a little old for that?"

She gasped dramatically as if accusing him. "How dare you insult my bunny like that! Shame on you, Hiwatari!"

Kai rolled his eyes, "Are you dumping it?" She gasped once more and hugged bunny tightly to her side, protecting it from Kai.

"I would never!" She brought bunny to her face, "Isn't that right, cuddle bunny?" She pressed it against her face and held it even tighter.

Kai rolled his eyes once more at her immaturity. He understood that females tended to act this way every so often but over a stuffed piece of shit?

"Just toss it and let's go, we need to get something to eat. I'm starving."

Hilary continued staring at her bunny and stroking its ears, straightening them out from being all crumpled. "You can go. I'm gonna finish here."

Kai's eyebrow twitched, "You want to clean up- or do you want to spend time with that _thing?_"

"Bunny is not a thing. He has feelings too, you know."

"It's not real."

"_He _is so real!" She snapped her attention to Kai, glaring at him.

"You don't intimidate me. Put the animal down and let's go."

"But Kai~! I want to spend time with bunny- it's been so long! We're having a reunion. You're invited to the party if you promise to be nice."

The room went silent as Kai registered what she was saying. A slight breeze was heard in the silent room. 'She's insane.'

"It'll be this upcoming Saturday, okay?"

"No."

Time to work her magic. Hilary pouted and gave Kai the most hurt looking expression. "Y-you don't want to come to the party?"

"No. I value my time unlike some other people. Now go shower, we're going for lunch."

"But I'm not going so I don't have to shower."

"You stink."

"You're ugly."

Kai's eyebrow twitched again. "Hilary, go shower."

"Why don't you go shower?"

"I already did, smart one."

"Bunny, do you want to shower?" She asked her stuffed animal. Hilary used her index fingers behind the bunny's head and made it shake its head back and forth saying 'no'.

Kai growled, "Give me that fucking thing!"

"No!" She hid bunny behind her, standing to her feet. "Don't swear at bunny, he's sensitive!"

"He isn't real!"

"Yes he is!"

"Hand him over."

"No, Kai!" she whined, taking a step back. Kai began trudging through the packed room and had his target set and ready to be terminated.

"The bunny must go."

"No, you do!"

"Just give me the damn bunny!"

"No, you can't have him! He's mine!"

Kai jumped over a stack of books and tripped over the top one, falling to the floor. Hilary used this to her advantaged and ran out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She ran downstairs and into the living room to hide behind the couch. She could hear Kai getting frustrated from her room – he was cursing the bunny and growling as he kicked the door open. He was livid.

"Hilary come out!"

She huddled quietly with bunny behind the arm of the couch, hoping he wouldn't look there. To her dismay, it happened to be the first place he checked. Her eyes widened and she felt a shock run through her body from the murderous vibe he was giving off. She slowly turned her head to face him and, in her view, he was emitting a dark, morbid aura and his eyes were red with hate. His eyes focused on the bunny and his eyes gleamed-target locked.

Kai reached down and snatched the bunny from her hands, smirking evilly at her, then it.

"Kai come on, he didn't do anything to you!"

"He was found." Kai spun on his heel and headed towards the kitchen. Hilary jumped to her feet and ran over to the two-toned blunette carrying her precious bunny.

"Okay! I surrender- I'll go with you just… just don't hurt bunny!"

"Go shower."

"Okay!" Hilary gave a worried look at bunny, glared at Kai and ran upstairs. Kai watched her run up the stairs and heard the bathroom door shut. Sighing to himself, he sat at the table and placed the toy in front of him. He sized up the bunny from head to…paw.

His arm was lying on the table and he rested his chin on it. He knocked the bunny over with the back of his hand, still glaring at it.

"I hate you."

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Alright well this probably wasn't what was expected at all and I apologize! Poor, poor bunny. This sort of links Hilary's life events together and how even though she's grown, she'll always be her sweet, innocent self.

Kai was a bit OOC in this, but whatever. I enjoyed writing it :)

The next chapter is currently in progress, as well as the next one for my other story. Again, I apologize for my delay!

Cheers,

-radixviro


	14. May The Best Man Win

Back again, bitches :D Here's the promised chapter! It's currently January 20th and my internet is down so it'll be a few days before I can post this – sorry!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. (I forgot to mention that in a few other chapters… my bad.)

* * *

><p>Chapter 14<p>

"Hilary." Kai shook the sleeping girl in attempt to wake her.

"Hilary come on, get up." Still no response, "Come on we need to get going." He shook her shoulder lightly, leaning over to see if her eyes had opened yet.

Still nothing. Kai's voice rose, "Hilary, get up. We need to go now."

Hilary pulled her covers up to her neck and turned on her other side, groaning for the annoyance to go away. "Leave me alone."

Kai's eyebrow twitched at her response, clearly not accepting it. He shook her shoulders harder this time, "Hilary get the hell up or we won't make the cut."

"You can go get cut on your own." She rolled back over to her other side.

Another twitch. Was she playing dumb or was she actually this stupid? She was the one that dragged him into this so she has to play her part. "If you don't wake up I'm telling Tyson you've agreed to be his maid for the next month."

Hilary groaned and rolled over to face Kai, hiding her face with the blanket but keeping only her eyes visible. "Get out, I need to get dressed."

Kai smirked to himself victoriously and spun on his heel to leave the room. "You have ten minutes. Hurry up, I'll be downstairs."

Hilary rolled her eyes as she flung the sheets off of herself. Groggily rolling out of bed, she made her way to the bathroom to prepare herself for the duo challenge today. The apparent master of the house had given her a ten-minute-limit so she wouldn't be able to dazzle the hell out of herself. Not that she did all the time; they were going to be on live television so she wanted to look decent. She threw on a long-sleeved black v-neck shirt with a pair of white pants. Hilary found a small, pink butterfly clip and put it in her hair off to the side to keep her bangs in place. Satisfied with her limited access to time, Hilary grabbed a pair of pink shoes out of her closet and ran downstairs.

"You're late." Hilary's eyes narrowed as she heard the devil speaking from the kitchen. She peered around the wall to find Kai sitting cross-legged in the chair and two cups of orange juice in front of him. To her surprised, Kai had made breakfast for the two of them. 'Well this is rare,' she thought to herself. The entire time he had been staying with her, she'd probably only seen him eat breakfast at least once.

"What are you talking about I finished just in time." She rested her left arm on the table, swinging her leg over on top of the other and snatching the toast off her plate.

"It took you ten minutes and twenty seconds – you lose." He quickly replied, drinking the last bit of his juice.

Her cheek was puffed out from the bite she was still chewing and gazed over at Kai. "Are you serious? Wait, what? How did I lose?"

"Quite serious. And you have to pay for lunch today."

Hilary swallowed her toast and chugged her orange juice. Placing the cup down, she replied, "But you're the man here, you should be treating me to gourmet meals."

"I made you breakfast, didn't I?"

"That just means you're doing your job as my guest here." Kai rolled his eyes. She was sure snarky today – what was her deal? 'Maybe she's nervous.'

"Are you scared?"

Hilary looked into Kai's eyes questioningly, not quite sure what he was asking. At times it was difficult to read him because he always had his front up and never really showed expression. Thinking that he was implying the food, she responded,

"Just because you're intimidating and cold-hearted doesn't mean I'm afraid of your cooking, Kai." She gave him a warm smile before picking up her fork and digging into the eggs he scrambled for her.

Kai was baffled. He sweat-dropped at her reply and chose not to respond to it. He was fully aware that she would somehow turn it into an argument. He watched as she happily ate the food he prepared for her, occasionally swinging her legs back and forth under the chair. He never realized it before, but she was actually quite small – her legs didn't even touch the floor when she was sitting down. He found it somewhat… cute. She was itty-bitty but her big mouth and bold attitude made up for her vertically challenged body.

"I'm six feet and almost three inches tall."

Hilary, still with her fork in her mouth, looked up at Kai's sudden words. Kai sighed, "That's the first thing I have to tell you about myself for the day."

Hilary swallowed her last bit of eggs before speaking, "Oh! You're starting to get used to telling me all this – I like it. But wow, Kai, I never knew you were such a giant!" She smiled sweetly at him with no ill-intentions. Kai, on the other hand, took some offence to her remark. What did she think he was, a beast?

As she stood up from her seat to put the dishes away, Kai reached out and grabbed them before her. He neatly stacked the plates on top of one another and set the two cups on them.

"My, my, you're just full of surprises today. First breakfast and now you're taking my responsibilities?"

"I was raised with manners." He said with his back to her, opening the dish washer and placing the plates in the bottom tray.

Hilary smiled, "What a gentleman – catering to me in such ways."

Kai pushed the bottom tray back in and pulled out the top one, organizing the cups already in it to fit in their two. "I'll always cater to you."

Hilary thanked the heavens above that he wasn't facing her. Her face, slowly but surely, turned more and more red by the second. It took her a bit to understand what he meant by it. 'But did he really mean it the way I took it?' She could picture herself with Kai walking outside and him taking off his jacket to lay it on a puddle for her to walk over. In a very fan-girlish way, she cupped her face in her hands and stared off into space, letting her imagination run wild.

Kai closed the dishwasher and turned to find Hilary off in a daze. 'What the hell…?' That wasn't like Hilary at all – well, maybe it was. There were moments where he would find himself questioning her sanity. "Uh, everything alright?"

Hilary snapped out of her thoughts and giggled nervously at the man in front of her. "Yep, I'm good! So let's get going!" She jumped up from her seat and slipped on her shoes as she ran for the door, stumbling.

Kai sighed to himself and smiled as he followed the crazy girl to the door. He grabbed his black sweater that was tossed the previous day across the arm of the couch and shut the door behind him.

Hilary clutched her sides and started shivering. How could she have been stupid enough to leave her jacket at home in this kind of weather? The sun had completely disappeared in complements to the Fall ending and the air had severely chilled.

Kai looked down at Hilary shaking, realizing that she didn't bring her sweater or anything. He felt it was partially his fault, too, because he didn't remind her or bring it with him when they left. He slowly took one arm at a time out of his sweater, opening it up and draping it around her shoulder. The sudden contact made her jump slightly as she felt Kai stop her from walking and turned her so she was facing him. She exhaled slowly, her breath mingling with the frost in the air, while she stared up into his eyes. He pulled his sweater together around her, telling her to put her arms through so she was wearing it properly.

"You're gonna catch a cold. You can't afford to get sick at this point." He lectured her as he zipped up the sweater, closing her small figure inside of it. He reached his arms for the hood on either side of her face, moving himself closer to her and pulling it up over her head. Hilary didn't say anything; her expression said it all. "There."

Kai smiled as he took a good look at Hilary in his sweater. It was massive on her, and because she was already so small it looked even bigger. The arms of the sweater completely hid her hands and the excess material hung loosely where her arms didn't reach. The body, itself, hid away her figure, engulfing her in it. Its hood was especially large and covered her whole head, only allowing her cute little face to show.

"Let's go, dwarf." Kai grabbed onto the loose end of the sleeve and pulled her along behind him as they proceeded to the building.

Taking a moment for it to register, "Hey! Are you calling me short?"

Kai looked over his shoulder to see Hilary pouting and furrowing her eyebrows. 'God, she's adorable.' He smiled to himself and turned to face the path ahead of them, purposely ignoring her.

"Just move faster. We're almost there."

"Hmph."

The two approached the building and gawked at the line to get inside. It didn't seem possible, but it trailed further down than when the qualifying round was taking place.

"This is ridiculous!" Hilary began to comment on the mass amount of people in the streets, "How are we supposed to get in now?"

Silly Hilary, did she not know Kai well enough by now? He continued to pull her behind him as they walked to the front doors.

"Hey buddy, back of the line!" The man in front yelled at Kai. Little did this man know that Kai was the type of person with zero tolerance for bullshit. He, also, didn't enjoy being spoken to in that sort of way. Kai glared down at the man and in a menacing voice demanded, "Move it."

The man cringed and apologized, moving out of their way. Hilary shot an apologetic look at the man as she was, once again, pulled in behind Kai. The security guards greeted them, allowing them to proceed to the main lobby where they found the Blade Breakers waiting for them.

"Hey love birds, get a move on! You have twenty minutes to practice before your turn!" Stupid Tyson; he always embarrassed Hilary one way or another.

"We don't need to practice; we have been the entire time."

Tyson, being the vulgar pig he is began raising his eyebrows up and down, smiling slyly at Hilary. "Practicing the entire time, huh?"

"Shut up, Tyson." Hilary threatened him, raising her hidden fist at him. "Oh-ho-ho! You're already wearing his clothes?" He turned to Kai, "Kai, you sly dog, you!"

Ray, Max, Daichi, Kenny, and even Minori stood behind Tyson snickering at his comment and Hilary's tomato face. Leave it to Tyson to make everything even more awkward than it already was the first time he opened his mouth. Hilary faintly blushed and looked down at Kai's sweater wrapped around her body. It was so warm and smelled just like him.

"Is there a problem with that?" Hilary glanced up from hiding in the sweater to find Kai standing beside her and, in his own way, telling Tyson to back off before he got his teeth knocked out. Tyson waved his arms in front of him, "Chill, Kai. I'm just kidding around. It's not like you two would ever make it as a couple anyway." Tyson, you just signed yourself over to Kai's wrath.

"Before Tyson gets killed," Minori interrupted, "Or Hilary's face explodes, let's get good seats so we aren't shoved to the back."

At this point Hilary had no idea how to react to the words of her cruel friends. They were subjecting her to the most vulgar thoughts and she wasn't skilled in hiding what she was feeling. She shot a death glare at Minori when she saw him smile at her before leading the way to the stage. "Don't get so worked up, Hil." Oh Ray, thank you for gracing life with your presence and comforting words. She could always count on you to show up like a knight in shining armour to save her from the hell she lived in of teasers and assholes. You truly are sent from abov- "You know you and Kai would make a great couple." Spoke too soon.

"Ray!"

He winked at Hilary, whom was clearly flustered out of her mind. "That's just my opinion."

"How about these?" Everyone looked in Daichi's direction as he stood on a chair yelling over to his friends. The spot he found was perfect- they were front row and centred directly in front of the stage. This seemed to be happening quite a lot; probably sheer luck. The group took their seats as they waiting in anticipation for the announcer to appear on stage.

Hilary stood at the end of their row and listened to her friends chatter amongst themselves. They may be horrible to her at times, but there's never been a moment in her life when she felt out of place with them.

"You plan on looking like a hoodlum all day?" She looked up to see the one and only Kai towering above her, smirking. 'A hoodlum, really?'

"Kai, was that the best you could come up with?" She stated sarcastically, pulling the hood of the sweater down from her head. Her hair was all out of place from rubbing against the material – she looked like she had just woken up. Hilary began pulling on her strands of hair, brushing them through with her fingers in attempt to not look like a jungle freak.

She felt Kai's hand push her own away and he began to untangle her hair from the clip she had put in it. He gently pulled her pieces out of the butterfly wings, being careful not to break it or hurt her. Hilary stared up into his concentrated eyes as he fixed her misplaced hair. He gently placed her bangs around her face, letting his fingertips trail from the root of the strand to the bottom where it cupped under her chin. His eyes met hers, leaving his fingers still playing with the same strand of hair. His eyes glistened in the light of the room, fully bringing out the violet in them. 'He's beautiful.' Hilary thought to herself as she continued to look into his extraordinary eyes.

"Perfect." He smiled and flicked her nose. Hilary scrunched her face at Kai which didn't intimidate him whatsoever. He chuckled, "You wearing that on stage? You'll look homeless." Well that moment was quickly ruined by his cocky attitude.

"O-oh! Right." Hilary unzipped it and took it off, gently folding it in a chair and handing it back to Kai. "Thank you."

He took it from her hands, being careful not to unfold it. "Hn."

"Hello ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer made his appearance on stage, his voice booming through the now filled room. It sure didn't take long for every seat to be filled and have the 'leftover' people standing around. "I'd like to ask all competitors to make their way back stage and get themselves prepared for the next part of the competition!"

"Good luck guys!"

"Yeah, you'll do great!"

"Kai, don't mess up!"

Hilary smiled at her friends as they gave her and Kai one last pep-talk before their performance. She had to admit the nerves didn't settle in until their motivational cheers.

"Don't be so nervous, Hilary," came Minori's voice, "You'll do great." She smiled at him and nodded – there's no way she would mess up either her or Kai's chances.

"Ready, Kai?" She pumped her fist in the air and grinned at her partner. Kai smirked at her excitement. This was going to be one hell of a letdown if he doesn't pull through for her today.

Hilary led the way backstage and Kai followed behind her. Max faced Minori and spoke in a hushed tone, "You really think they'll be alright?"

Minori stared up at the stage and smirked, "Who knows. Let's just hope she doesn't fall off."

"As our young talents get ready back stage, let's give a warm welcome to our judges!" The lights dimmed and the spotlight hit five people walking up to the judges table in single file. The woman walking in front waved out to the crowd as they cheered. The three men walking in behind her did the same but added their own additional motions to their appearance. One stuck his tongue out like Gene Simmons (AN: The guy from KISS. Had no other way to explain it lol.) and the other two did funny dance moves.

"And now our very special guest – Hajime!" The rockstar walked over to the table, waving out to his fans and flashing his beautiful teeth to the crowd. And, of course, the typical was shouted out to him; "Have my babies!" "I named my dog after you!" So on and so forth.

"Alright judges," the announcer was now at their table standing in front of them, "Anything to say before we kick things off?"

"I'd just like to wish our competitors the best of luck in this challenge," said one of the men.

"Just do your best and have fun – and kick some ass!" the other man said, earning loud cheers from the crowd.

"We will be judging based on the entire package. If there's one slip up, it may cost them the entire thing." said the one woman judge, but then added with a laugh, "But no pressure!"

"Good luck to you all!" said the last man.

Last but not least, Hajime. "Give it your all and don't let your nerves get the best of you. It's tough to be up there, but you'll come out looking even stronger if you can nail your performances and get the crowd going. I, in particular, will be judging based on the match-up and the song the two produced. If it doesn't meet standards, then – well, you know what'll happen." He smiled sinisterly into the camera that was now focusing in on his face, "May the best man win."

Minori wasn't an idiot. As soon as he heard his brother speak, he knew it was about Kai. Hajime had something planned and it wasn't going to be pretty. Minori stared up at his twin, 'What have you become?'

"First up to begin our competition is Tamaki and her partner, Riku!"

Tamaki shuffled on to the stage, clearly not able to walk in the heels she was wearing. She grabbed the microphone and shrieked into it, "Oh my goodness, I'm so excited to be here for you all! I know you're going to love me even more than you already do!"

Safe to say she was the only one smiling and ecstatic about her being on stage. The room was silent- even her partner didn't say a word. Riku was given his own microphone. He lifted it to his lips and spoke in a mellow tone, "Uh, hey everyone." The crowd clapped and cheered, leaving Tamaki fuming in her spot on stage. She quickly took back the spotlight, "Anyway! Here we go!"

Fortunately for the crowd, Riku started off the song singing smoothly into the microphone. His words flowed together and he hit every note with perfection. After finishing his bit, Tamaki took over and squealed into the microphone- causing it to squeal back.

"Even technology can't take it!" someone from the crowd yelled out, earning laughter and comments from other members watching the dope sing. Riku shook his head in shame.

The two ended their song in unison- er, well, let's just say Riku sounded like an angel, whereas Tamaki sounded like two street cats in heat fighting over liver.

The judges had to force themselves to clap no matter what just to keep the spirits of the competitors confident and not run off the stage in tears. The crowd, however, was silent. You could have heard a pin drop.

The announcer walked back on stage laughing nervously, "Well there ya, uh, have it. Let's hear it for Riku and Tama-"

Tamaki cut him off and snatched the microphone from his hands, "Actually, it's Tamaki and Riku but it's alright to get that mixed up!"

"Yeah whatever," the announcer said sarcastically, grabbing his microphone back. Shouts and applause were given for Riku as he exited the stage. The bimbo thought it was all for her as she waved like the queen and tripped on her way off stage.

"Thank the heavens she's gone," the announcer said, thinking he was speaking quietly to himself. "The last couple for today's auditions are none other than Ms. Tatibana and Mr. Kai Hiwatari! Come on out!"

The spotlight hit the entrance where they were supposed to walk out from. The lights were completely shut off and the crowd clapped their hands. Kai was the first to emerge from behind the curtain. Needless to say the girls were fainting all over the place. Hilary was pulled out from behind the curtain by Kai and the crowd went wild. Hilary was getting shouts from numerous guys complimenting her and cheering her on. Some, however, received the death glare from guy when they shouted filthy things up to his Hilary. Nobody was allowed to do that.

"Take it away you two!" The announcer smiled as he hopped off the stage. There was one double-sided microphone at the edge of the stage for Kai and Hilary to sing into. It almost looked like a clear disc that stood upright on the stand, with grey pads for them to sing into from either side, making them face one another.

As they walked up to it together, Kai whispered down to Hilary, "I figured it would be easier for you to sing to me and not the crowd."

Hilary didn't bother looking at Kai. She stared out into the huge amount of people and her knees began to feel shaky. Because Kai was so much taller, he was given a stool to sit on across from Hilary who was standing on the other side of the microphone. Kai switched the button on the microphone to 'off' so they were only speaking to each other for a brief moment.

"Hilary," he said gently, trying to get her attention. She nervously looked into his eyes; he could tell how scared she was. "Just look at me, alright? It's like being at home when it's just the two of us- we're singing to each other." She bit her lip and slowly nodded.

"Any time now," came Hajime's sickening voice from the judge's table. Kai shot him a look before giving Hilary back his attention.

"Ready?" She nodded once more, almost shaking. Kai flicked the microphone back on and the guitarist began to play in the background. Hilary looked at the crowd nervously before Kai could begin his part. The anxiety was getting to her- she felt like she was going to faint. Kai grabbed onto her hand and held it in his. He took in a breath,

_All I hear is your voice_

_A whisper away_

_Always calls to me_

Hilary lightly echoed after Kai did, still too nervous to fully sing into the microphone. She looked into Kai's eyes as he sang, unable to look away. This was for two reasons: one being the fear of the crowd, and two being how mesmerizing his voice was. Even when it was just the two of them rehearsing she could never look away from him.

_All I keep with me_

_Are memories of you_

_Wonder what it's like out there_

_Hoping all your good dreams come true_

_When you float out above_

_Does the world finally come in to view?_

_Today I dedicate to you_

_Today I dedicate to you_

_I won't let you go_

_I need you to stay_

_There's a place in my heart it just won't be the same_

_Today I dedicate to you_

Kai squeezed Hilary's hand in his, smiling at her. She smiled back this time, slowly becoming more confident as they continued their words together. Their voices mingling together was nothing less of perfection.

_All I hear are your words_

_They carry me, carry me_

_Everywhere I go_

_And all I dream of is me next to you_

_Did you find yourself out there?_

_Did you really find out the truth?_

_Well I guess that we knew_

_That we'd all see the angel in you_

_When you float out above_

_Does the world finally come in to view?_

Hilary smiled at Kai through her words, using her other hand to pull herself closer to the microphone. She was in – what Kai called – her 'zone'. Once Hilary was into the music she went at it full heartedly and belted out each note.

_Today I dedicate to you_

_Today I dedicate to you_

_I won't let you go_

_I need you to stay_

_There's a place in my heart it just won't be the same_

_There's a place in my heart that just won't be the same _

_Without you, you, you_

_Can I say I miss you down here?_

_And you're not, not alone_

_Can I say I miss you down here?_

_No I'm not, not alone_

_Today I dedicate to you_

Hilary pulled herself into the microphone so closely that her lips were grazing the grey pad (AN: Sounds weird, I know, but I don't know what it's called!).

_Today I dedicate to you (x4)_

_I won't let you go_

_I need you to stay_

_There's a place in my heart it just won't be the same_

_I won't let you go_

Kai leaned in closer to his side of the microphone, his lips almost touching the material.

_I need you to stay_

_There's a place in my heart it just won't be the same_

_There's a place in my heart that just won't be the same _

_Without you, you, you_

Both Kai and Hilary let out their last note and ended together at the same time. They had brought themselves so close to the microphone that if it wasn't there, their lips would be touching each other. Hilary panted heavily, smiling at Kai who still hadn't let go of her hand. Kai returned the smile- he hadn't torn looked away from her since they started.

"WOOO! THAT'S MY MAIN MAN!" Daichi shouted from below the stage, being the start of the uproar from the crowd.

Hilary looked out into the audience and her smile grew even bigger as their cheers became louder. She and Kai stepped out in front of the microphone so the camera could get a better shot of them.

"We did it!" Hilary happily shouted and jumped into Kai's arms, hugging him tightly. She wouldn't have been able to do it without him.

"Words can't even begin to explain that performance!" the announcer appeared back on stage and stood beside Kai being glomped by Hilary. "Let's give it up once more for Kai and Hilary!" The crowd was so loud the floor was vibrated from their cheers.

Hilary let go of Kai and smiled up at him, not knowing what to say. She was so happy to have him there; it meant the world to her. She looked away from him and back into the crowd. She bowed and happily skipped off the stage, pulling Kai behind her.

Backstage Hilary spun herself around and hugged Kai once more, jumping as she did so. "We did it, we did it, we did it!" she chanted as she kept smiling up at him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her into the air, spinning her around in circles. She hugged his neck as he held on to her tightly, refusing to let go. She leaned back so she could face him, still being held up in his arms. In that moment time froze. In Hilary's mind it was only her and Kai together right now- there was no one else around. She cupped his cheeks in her two hands and stared into his eyes.

Kai felt Hilary's hands hold his cheeks as she gazed into his eyes, not breaking contact. Her eyes were filled with what seemed like a thousand emotions all at once. He knew for a fact she was the happiest girl in the world right now after what they had just accomplished. But he could also see 'Passion?' He questioned himself and got lost in his thoughts. He was brought back when he felt Hilary's hair tickling his forehead and nose. She was leaning in closer to him, caught up in her own thoughts and still looking into his eyes. Just as it did for Hilary, time stopped for Kai. The girl he had fallen in love with was in his arms right now, looking at him like she was staring in to his heart. Normally, Kai would have felt bombarded or even violated at this, but he was alright with her seeing everything. He wanted her to know what he felt for her and what he always wanted to say but couldn't. He wanted more than anything to know how he would treat her and what he would do to protect her for the rest of their lives. Kai knew exactly what he wanted, and it was a lifetime- even longer, with Hilary.

Life was in slow motion at this point. As Kai was gathering his thoughts and mentally preparing himself to throw away his pride and confess his emotions to the girl of his dreams, he noticed her eyes shift. They went from his eyes right to his lips. Kai wasn't a man of many emotions, but he could feel himself heating up. He could feel his cheeks begin to flush and his heart was pounding against his ribcage. This was torture for him. Hilary slowly tilted her head and her eyes began to shut.

'This is it.' The moment he was waiting for. He, too, slowly began to close his eyes, waiting to feel her lips on his. The thought of it made his mind go crazy and his heart thudded harder in his chest.

'Is this love?'

Hilary leaned in closer to Kai, not fully aware of what she was doing. She concluded some time ago that she was, in face, in love with none other than Kai Hiwatari. I mean, how couldn't she be? He became the closest person to her and became her support. He was the one person that she knew would be there when she called out. She wanted him to know how much she really did love him and that she would thank him for the rest of her life for being there with her. Kai was every girl's dream – handsome, tall, smart, loyal, and even loving. Her heart fluttered in her chest and she brought herself closer to him. She was in a dazed state; she figured she must have been dreaming. There was no way this could be happening… 'Could it?'

Hilary brought her lips closer to his. Their breath was mingling in the small space between them, trying to finally pull them in to each other.

They leaned in to one another, their lips lightly grazing against one another…

Hilary's breath shortened and Kai's heart stopped thudding.

"Hilary."

* * *

><p>FIN<p>

MUHAHA finally a somewhat kissing scene, woohoo! Sorry for the killer at the end haha I had to end it there because… well, I'm not quite sure. I just love a cliffhanger.

Longest. Scene. Ever. But I wanted to make their feelings clear and blah blah that's my excuse.

Well that's enough of me for one day- hope you all enjoyed that! I was going to mention something but I forgot… oops.

Song: Dedicate

Artist: Runner Runner

Cutest most adorable and forever lasting couple in the universe: Kai and Hilary :3

Until next time!

Cheers,

-radixviro


	15. Decision

Thank you so much for the reviews! One of you in particular just kills me every time I read what you say haha- you know who you are :)

On with the fic!

* * *

><p>Chapter 15<p>

"Hilary…"

She heard a whisper lingering in the air as she barely touched Kai's lips with her own. She paused herself, fluttering her eyes back open. Almost in sequence, Kai began to open his eyes, too, wondering where the warmth from his lips had gone. Their eyes met and he smiled sweetly at her, wanting to fully press his lips against hers; he wasn't going to settle for a mere brush of her lips. "Hilary?" Kai spoke softly to the girl in his arms, curious as to why she suddenly stopped herself.

"Hilary!" She heard her name again, but didn't see Kai's mouth move. She glanced to her right to see Hajime standing a few feet away from them, fuming. Snapping back into reality, Hilary spun her head back to Kai and her face flushed bright red. She wiggled to get out of his grasp and he, unwillingly, let her go. He set her down gently and glared at Hajime. Hilary, flustered out of her mind, held her hands together in front of her and held her head down.

Kai, on the other hand, maintained his composure and had his arm wrapped around her waist. He continued to glare at the outraged Hajime for ruining his moment. They were so close- millimeters away from finally connecting.

"What the hell are you doing, Hilary?" Hajime growled through his gritted teeth, his eyes burning holes into the two in front of him. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. The man he wanted dead was trying to kiss his girl. "How could you let him force himself on you? Is your brain up your ass today or something?" His eyes shot to Kai, "How dare you do that to her."

"I didn't do anything," Kai spoke in a cool, unaffected tone. He didn't care what this kid thought or how he felt. Hell, he didn't care much about his existence.

"So you're blaming Hilary for the whole thing?"

"As far as I'm concerned it's none of your business." Ouch, that was a punch to the gut for Hajime.

"H-Hajime, Kai didn't force anything. It wasn't what it looked like." There was Kai's punch. Did she really not think anything of what they were so close to doing? Maybe it meant more to Kai than it did to her.

"Why can't you just stay away from him?" Hajime growled, pointing at Kai with a shaky hand.

"What does it matter to you who she's with?"

"I wasn't talking to you, so shut up." Don't go there, Hajime.

"Get over yourself." Kai, don't start.

"Yeah? Maybe if you didn't come around in the first place none of this would be happening!" Here we go.

"I've always been around. Your prissy ass appeared from hell and you haven't done anything but make her miserable. Go back to your boy-band." Oh dear…

"If you weren't such a possessive jackass then maybe she wouldn't be so upset all the time!"

"I may be possessive but I'm not an _obsessive _crazy fuck like you." Kai removed his arm from Hilary and he took a step towards Hajime. He was reaching his tolerance limit and was preparing to knock this kid off his feet.

"What did you just call me?" Hajime now stepped forward, still staring at Kai in disgust.

"Did I stutter?"

"Guys, please stop." Hilary pleaded, starting to get nervous. She knew Kai's temper and the results of it. But she didn't seem to know how Hajime reacted to certain things anymore. True, he was very different than he was before, but he couldn't have lost his sweet side. Right?

"Shut up, Hilary." Hajime snapped at her, causing her to retreat back a bit. He never spoke to her like that before- 'What's going on?'

Hilary may have been taken back by it, but not Kai. Now he was ready to snap Hajime's neck. "Don't fucking talk to her like that."

"Oh and why not? You plan on attacking me?" He mocked, "Good luck with that one. I have security lined all around this building and if a fight breaks out, you'll be the one they take down."

Kai gritted his teeth, holding back his anger, "I'd rather that than have you disrespect Hilary." He went to lunge for Hajime but was stopped in his tracks. His eyes snapped down to find Hilary clinging to his arm, looking up at him, begging him to stop. "Not here, please." She whispered to him, not wanting anything to happen to either of her friends. This was the last place that something like this should be happening. This was supposed to be a time of happiness after their amazing performance and an even greater shot at winning the ultimate prize. If Kai were to lash out, it would sabotage every chance they had.

Kai sighed and stood up straight, using his free hand to ruffle her hair. "Fine," he turned to Hajime, "Consider this a gift from an angel." He looked down at Hilary and nodded, then retreated to the audience to find his teammates. She smiled as he walked away and turned back as she heard Hajime yell out to Kai.

"Coward!"

"Hajime," she said softly, taking a few steps towards him, "What's gotten into you? Why are you acting like this?"

Hajime sighed to himself and place a hand on his head, messing up his hair. He stood upright and stared off into the distance opposite to where Hilary was standing. "You realize a relational team can't partake in this competition."

Hilary stared at him blankly, not quite understanding what he meant. Hajime shut his eyes and gritted his teeth, "Any sign of any sort of relationship developing within this contest will ruin any and every chance of winning. Do you understand?" His voice got louder as he turned to her, smirking, "Your friend there is already kicked out. Once he threatened me, every right he had in this event was stripped from him and he is no longer a remaining contestant. I'll make an exception for you, Hilary, because we're close."

"W-what? Kai can't be out of this, he didn't even touch you!" Hajime tugged at his shirt and ripped the sleeve, along with the bottom of the shirt. He wrinkled up his pants and pulled a pocket out of one side of them. His eyes focused back to Hilary and his smirk grew to a smile,

"Hilary, do you not see the condition I'm currently in? I mean, look at me- I'm a mess."

She was speechless. She couldn't make sense of anything that was going on – there was no logic to it.

"Hajime, what are you?" Hajime stepped toward her, only to have her move back. "What kind of idiotic question is that, Hilary? I figured you to be the intelligent type." He reached out to hold her hand and she quickly snatched it back, cupping it in her other hand.

"You're not the same Hajime I knew before. Why did you change?" Hajime sighed to himself, stuffing a hand into his 'untouched' pocket.

"You can say I've matured and grown out of my kiss-ass attitude. When I want something I get it- keep that in mind, Hilly." He turned and walked away, leaving Hilary by herself backstage. Riku and Tamaki had left as soon as they got backstage to meet with their own friends and wait for the announcer to reveal the remaining two competitors.

Hilary stood alone, staring at the spot Hajime had walked away from. Her head was spinning – everything kept going from one thing to another. How come this all happened in the first place? 'This whole incident wasn't necessary.' A faint blush crept to her cheeks when she remembered being up in Kai's arms, feeling the warmth of his breath on her face. She broke her fingertips to her lips, touching them gently.

'So soft…'

"Can I have your attention please!" The announcer called out, pulling Hilary out of her dazed state. She listened carefully, "I'll give you all a few moments to regroup and settle down. Can all contestants please join the audience for this announcement."

Hilary scanned the room for the exit out into the crowd. Finding it, she advanced towards it in a fast pace. She had a feeling this was going to be big news. She stepped out into the crowd as they were chatting quietly and going back to their seats. She looked over at the front row and found her friends, along with Kai, lined up and talking. As Hilary walked towards her friends, numerous hands stuck out in front of her from the audience waiting for a high-five and congratulating her on her amazing performance. She blushed lightly and thanked them all, even receiving some hugs from a few people.

"Hey superstar!" Max called out to Hilary when she reached their seats. She smiled sweetly at him, hugging Max when he stood and extended his arms to her.

"That was mind-blowing, Hil! Great job!" Ray stood and held out his arms waiting for his hug. Hilary laughed and hugged all her friends as they told her how great she was on stage. They were proud of her, and that made her proud of herself.

"I couldn't have done it without Kai, though." She turned to him as he sat with his arms folded, opening one eye to acknowledge her. He smiled and nodded, closing his eyes once more.

"You two sure make a great pair," Tyson teased, winking at Hilary to make her face turn pink. Rather than complementing his implication, she smiled brightly and nodded, "We sure do!"

"Thank you for your patience!" The announcer began. Hilary took her seat between Kai and Minori as she waited for him to continue, "Due to certain circumstances there has been a change in plans with what was supposed to be the conclusion to our event."

A murmur grew from the crowd's anticipation. They turned to one another questioning what was going on not understanding.

"I'm sad to say, but one of the contestants has been removed from the program. Therefore, rather than ending this early, there will be one more round for the remaining performers to decide the winner."

A light entered the darkened room as a door in the distance opened up. Hajime walked out faking a limp and his hair tousled. Everyone in the audience turned their attention to his dramatic, and totally unnecessary, entrance. He had changed his clothes from before and had a ridiculously large bandage on his cheek. The crowd gasped, their whispers becoming louder and louder as they discussed the image in front of them. Hajime climbed the steps to his table and sat down, running his hand through his mangled hair.

"Hilary, what happened?" she turned to Minori, not quite sure how to respond. "Last we saw him was after your performance. He got up and left in a hurry, now he's showing up like this." Minori folded his arms across his chest and shifted his eyes to Hilary's, "He's always been an attention seeker, but what's driven him to this extent?"

Hilary was at a loss for words- that seemed to be happening a lot. She wasn't sure how to put everything that happened into a couple words without getting tongue-tied or too embarrassed to say it all. Her mind swayed back and forth between telling the whole story or leaving out her and Kai's moment. Deciding to leave the moment out of the explanation, she opened her mouth to answer, "A-"

"He saw me try to kiss Hilary."

Both Hilary and Minori spun their heads towards Kai in shock. Hilary's eyes had widened ten times larger than they normally would and her mouth had dropped. Minori, on the other hand, didn't look as surprised. He knew this would happen eventually so he was well prepared for when the news came out. What surprised him was the fact that Kai said it so casually out in the open.

"K-Kai," Hilary stammered, finding it hard to believe what she just heard him say. 'So he wasn't ashamed that it was me..?'

"Yeah that's enough to throw him out of line," Minori stated, readjusting himself in his seat and closed his eyes. "Just be careful."

Kai nodded, knowing exactly what Minori meant. If Hajime was shallow enough to treat Hilary the way he had been, then the chances of him immaturely plotting something was very high.

"Now to the judges!" The announcer called out. The spotlight landed on the judges table, awaiting a response from one of them.

"Ahem," the woman cleared her throat, "There has been an adjustment to the contestant lis-"

"Kai is out of the competition." Hajime cut off the woman and bolding spoke into the microphone, glaring at Kai. Gasps and protests filled the room as the audience stood to their feet.

"But he's one of the top two best acts! You can't just get rid of him!" Daichi shouted at Hajime with his fist in the air, "What the hell is going on?"

"Yeah! You can't just toss him out- that's not fair!" Tyson was now on his feet in the same stance as Daichi.

Ray focused his attention to Kai who sat in the same position, seemingly unaffected by the whole thing. "Kai, what happened?" Ray asked his friend in a loud voice, trying to overcome the noise around him. Kai said nothing and continued to keep his eyes shut.

Hajime's anger rose to a new high as people in the audience defended Kai and were arguing for him to remain a part of the event. He clutched his hands together under the table to try and hold all his frustration and hatred in. His brows furrowed as he shifted his eyes from his lap, to the table, through the crowd, and finally to Kai. Hajime's blood boiled with more rage as he watched Kai's expression- how could he not be upset or angry about this? The boil in the pit of his stomach became stronger when he saw Hilary move closer to Kai's ear to whisper something to him. She placed her hand comfortingly on his shoulder, trying to get his attention.

Hajime couldn't take it anymore. He stood on his feet, knocking over his chair in the process. He slammed his two hands down on the table, denting it slightly. "He doesn't belong here!" He growled loudly into the microphone, causing the audience to quiet down and stare in his direction. Hajime's hands were now shaking with anger, "He doesn't deserve this!"

'He's officially lost it,' Minori thought to himself with a smile.

"Umm… well I guess that's it for this morning, everyone!" the announcer said cautiously, keeping an eye on Hajime as he took his seat back. "We're going to have a two-hour intermission to get things settled in. There are refreshments and snacks in the cafeteria out the back left doors."

The men on either side of Hajime were trying to calm him down and reason with him. Unfortunately for them, Hajime had reached his limit and wanted nothing to do with any other life form. All he ever wanted was Hilary and she was taken from him. 'I never did anything to hurt her,' he thought to himself, holding back tears and blocking out the world around him. 'I gave her my all, my life, and this is how she repays me?' He growled to himself as he pictured Kai holding Hilary in his arms and trying to kiss her. 'That should have been me holding her.' Hajime squeezed his eyes tightly as he fought back angry tears.

"Come on, Kai. I owe you lunch," Hilary smiled at her friend, earning a nod in return. Kai stood to his feet and waited for her to follow after inviting the others along for a bite to eat. Kenny, Daichi and Tyson decided to stay behind and explore the building some more before they were called back in for the finale.

"Suit yourself!" Max grinned and waved to his friends as he led the way to a small vender outside across the street from the building. He was followed by Ray, who was leaving a gap between himself and the duo behind him. Hilary was the last one out the door. The last anyone saw was her looking up and smiling warmly at Kai.

"I hate him," he whispered to himself. The men looked at one another then back at Hajime. "Sir, what did you say?"

Hajime gritted his teeth and opened his eyes slightly, "I hate him."

"Who are you ta-"

"I said I HATE HIM!" He slammed his fist into the table and slumped back into his chair, leaning his head back. His hair hung over the back of the chair as he stared up at the ceiling, covering his forehead with his hand. This was all too much for Hajime to handle. It had to end.

"What can I get for you young man?" An older gentleman behind the vender asked Max. The man had a large moustache and thick eyebrows that were covered with grey patches. He wore a white- err, supposed to be white apron with blotches of ketchup stains and various other colourful marks.

"Hmm," Max curiously looked through the menu a fourth time, "It all looks so good… I can't make up my mind!"

"Every option is a different type of hotdog," Ray said to Minori, who was standing beside him, with a sweat-dropped.

"Yeah, you'd think there would be some sort of variety."

Hilary giggled while watching Max struggle with his order and Ray's impatience. Minori continued to verbally slam the hotdog vender and its lack of customer attraction. She held her hands together loosely in front of her while reading the menu above the stand.

"What are you getting?" came a cool voice from above her. She reached her head back and saw Kai's face directly above hers, "Will it be a hotdog or a hotdog?"

Hilary giggled and spun around so she wasn't straining her neck. She was getting old now- couldn't risk cracking her any neck at this point. "Hmm, I'm not too sure. A hotdog sounds like the best option."

Kai smiled at her, amused that she found his lame attempt at a joke funny. Yet another thing about her that he adored; she would laugh at anyone's joke no matter how pathetic it was. She didn't think that anyone deserved to be degraded or feel like an outcast- this showed her caring, more empathetic side.

"Next please!" the man called out to Minori as Max happily stepped aside with three identical hotdogs.

Minori moved up in front of the cash register mumbling and cursing. "I'll have a hotdog."

"Ah, good choice young man!" the man said happily as he flipped one off of the barbecue. Minori sweat-dropped and gave the man a weird look. 'Whack job.'

"Ketchup and other toppings are over on the side," he grinned at the sceptical, yet scared, Minori. "NEXT!"

Ray and Hilary quickly placed their orders and within seconds they were topping it off with Max- who was obviously piling on the mustard. "Next!"

Kai walked up to the man behind the cash register and handed him the money for the food. "Hey kid, aren't you getting anything?" The man was ignored by the two-toned captain as he walked towards his friends on the other side of the stand. The man shrugged his shoulders. "Next!"

"Kai, aren't you getting something?" Hilary asked him, adding the last bit of ketchup to her meal.

"Not hungry."

"But you were bitching at me this morning about-"

"I said I'm not hungry, it's fine."

"But I had to pay for i-"

"I covered the bill, it's fine."

Hilary growled in frustration, "No, it's not fine! Quit interrupting me when I'm trying to ta-"

Kai covered her mouth with his hand and leant down to take a bite of her lunch. He straightened himself back up and chewed his large bite. "Not bad."

Hilary gave Kai a strange face as if saying 'What the hell was the point of that?' She giggled to herself as she watched him swallow his stolen snack. She grabbed a napkin from a dispenser on the table and reached up on her tippy toes to wipe some ketchup off the corner of his mouth. Kai gave her a small with soft eyes, almost like they were smiling themselves. "Thanks."

The three onlookers stood beside one another off in the distance watching the scene in front of them. Max was happily stuffing his face with both hands full of hotdogs. Minori stood with an irritated look on his face – due to Max previously drooling over his food - and one hand in his pocket as he used the other to eat. "Well isn't that precious?" Ray stated with a smirk on his face.

"I didn't know he could smile," Max tried to say with his mouth full of food. Minori's eyebrow twitched as bits and pieces of hotdogs went flying out of Max's mouth, just missing his face.

Kai's spidey-senses began to tingle (AN: lol :3) when he heard a strange noise from up above. His eyes shot up to the sky, but nothing was there. His violet eyes scanned the area to locate where that strange feeling came from.

"Are you alright?" Hilary asked him sweetly. Kai looked at her then back up and over the area once more.

"Yeah."

"Come on let's go see what else we can find!" Ray called out to Kai and Hilary, walking ahead with Minori and Max. Hilary walked in front of Kai as they caught up with their friends. Kai kept looking around cautiously- that weird feeling still in the pit of his stomach.

"Hey Kai," Hilary began softly, still walking ahead, "I'm really sorry about what happened. I'm sorry I made you lose your spot in the competition and everything."

"Don't worry about it."

"But Kai," she stopped suddenly, spinning around to face him, "It's all my fault. I didn't mean for anything to happen because I was so stupid to think that I could just k-" she paused as Kai's eyes shifted up above them to the top of the building they were next to. It wasn't very large, maybe three stories high, but something was strange about it.

"Umm, Kai?" He looked back down at Hilary, "Y-yeah, sorry, it's fine I didn't really care much for it anyway."

Wrong choice of words Kai. Rather than Hilary taking it as he initially meant it about the competition, she thought it was about their almost-kiss. "Oh," she turned back around with her head down.

Kai's eyes widened as the feeling tightened his stomach. "Hilary! Look out!" Kai pushed her out of the way as a potted plant crashed to the ground where she was just standing. He looked at Hilary lying on her back as she sat up to see what was going on. His eyes shot back up to the building's roof. He squinted his eyes to adjust to the distance and he saw a silhouette lean back from looking over the edge and take off. He growled and tightened his fists, 'What the hell was that?'

"K-kai?" Hilary was now on her feet and looking at the broken pieces of the pot on the ground.

"Guys!" Ray yelled as he, Max, and Minori went rushing back to them. "What's going on?"

"I-I have no idea," Hilary stammered. She gave Ray a questioning look then focused her attention back to Kai, "What just happened?"

Kai moved towards her and placed his hand in her hair, leaning down so they were eye-to-eye. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"No, I'm fine," she looked into his eyes, "But what was that just now?"

Kai stood up straight with a sigh, "I have no idea. Someone tossed it over the ledge."

"Maybe they accidently knocked it over?" Max suggested while hugging Hilary. Minori shook his head, "There's no way this was an accident. It wouldn't have fallen so far away from the side of the building if it simply fell- and the wind today isn't strong enough to move much of anything. Kai's right, it was thrown over."

"Why would someone do that to me though?" Hilary stood with her hand holding onto her other arm that was hanging loosely, staring at the plant.

Kai gave Hilary a worried look and felt someone watching him. His eyes averted to Minori. He nodded his head knowing they were thinking the same answer to Hilary's question; to get back at Kai.

A small crowd had formed around them out of curiosity. "Was anyone hurt?" one lady asked, questioning why Hilary was holding her arm. Geez, it was a simple habit. "No, we're alright, thanks." Minori spoke for Hilary, knowing she wasn't in any mood to talk to anyone- especially someone she didn't know.

"Let's not let this ruin our day!" called out Max, trying to lighten the mood, "Let's go do some shopping. We'll just keep a close eye on Hilary, that's all."

"Yeah," Ray agreed, "There's a few small shops around here I've been wanting to check out."

"You okay with that?" Kai was now standing beside Hilary looking down at her. He watched her hair sway back and forth as she nodded her head. He gently spun her around by her shoulders so they were facing, "I won't let anything hurt you."

* * *

><p>"What are you dressing as for Halloween?" (AN: Still almost Halloween… it's only been, what, 3 months)<p>

Hilary shrugged her shoulders at him, not really knowing how to answer. She hadn't been thinking about it all that much with everything else going on. "Look," Kai pointed, trying to get her attention, "There's a little place over there. Wanna go in?"

It wasn't the most dazzling looking store, but it had a cute edge to it. There were _"scary" _black curtains hanging in front of it with twinkling purple lights. Pumpkins and other Halloween decorations were set up around the entrance that was covered with orange and green lights.

"Sure, it looks cute." She smiled at him then looked back at the store.

"We'll catch up later." Kai spoke loudly to whichever one of their friends was listening and turned to follow Hilary in.

"Alright!" Max called behind him, "We'll meet up when we have to go back for the finale! Take care of her!"

Kai trailed behind Hilary into the store. Upon entering, a rubber spider dropped from the ceiling and in front of Hilary's face. The colour drained from her and she jumped back screaming, "AHHH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!"

Kai caught her and smiled, flicking the spider away. "It's not real," he said, trying to calm her down.

"It's so gross!" Kai rolled his eyes with a smile and pushed her through the entrance. There was a chandelier flickering from the ceiling. "What the hell is this?" Kai asked to himself as he continued to shove Hilary forward. She clung onto his arm behind her when she heard a rustle.

"D-d-did you hear that?" She stepped back and pressed herself against his front, refusing to move any further.

"Hilary just go."

"No!" she shouted in a hushed tone, "I will not move!"

Before Kai had the time to roll his eyes, a figure jumped out from the darkness with a flashlight on his masked face.

"!" Hilary jumped back and stumbled to try and run away. Kai held her in place as he looked at the person, clearly not amused. The figure lifted it's mask off with a laugh and turned on the lights.

"Sorry little lady," the man laughed, "Didn't mean to scare you that much!"

Hilary paused in her current position; she was leaning back on Kai trying to kick her way out of his grip, staring at the man in front of her wide-eyed. Kai lifted her back to her feet so she could balance on her own.

Hilary's eye twitched, "Why the hell did you do that?"

The store keeper put a hand behind his head and apologized once more, then explained,

"I've been practicing my scaring techniques for when we open up the haunted house in the back." He motioned behind him to a large black door with the words "_Haunted"_ written on it.

"Ah-huh." Hilary said slowly, not wanting anything more to do with this place, "Alrighty well thanks a bunch! We'll be going n-"

She quieted down when she noticed Kai wasn't behind her anymore. She looked around the room and spotted him between two aisles looking through costumes, "What are you doing?"

Kai poked his head out, "You wanted a costume, right?" and went back to his searching.

'Since when was he interested in this?'

Hilary cautiously made her way to where Kai was; frantically looking on either side of her to make sure nothing else was going to pop out. She safely made it beside him and watched him zip through the costumes. Most of the female costumes were skanky and provocative- 'Go figure.' Hilary rolled her eyes; she hated it. Maybe it was her inner jealous that drove her mad, or her insecurities that made her hate every plastic girl she saw. Her hateful thoughts stopped when she heard Kai snort. He pulled out a costume that was meant to be a "ghost". The girl on the cover wore one small piece of material across her chest and another covering her lower area.

"Look Hilary," he started, holding back a laugh, "Wear some nipple napkins and you're set."

She rolled her eyes at him and his stupid joke. "You're hilarious, Kai," she said sarcastically.

"Thanks, I think so too." He returned the sarcasm and hung the costume back up on the rack. It took the two a good twenty minutes before finding something of decency for Hilary to wear.

"How about this?" Kai pulled out a hanger with the cutest outfit Hilary had ever seen hanging from it. The costume was Minnie Mouse themed- ears and all. There was a little red dress with white polka dots all around it and white t-shirt to go underneath. Kai held it up against Hilary and it was a perfect match in his opinion.

Hilary grabbed the hanger and held it out in front of her, "Oh my gosh, it's adorable!"

"Is this what you'd like?" A creepy voice snuck up behind Hilary, causing a shiver to travel rapidly up her spine. She jumped away from where the voice came from and saw the store keeper laughing.

"Sorry, store policy. Y'know-" he began, "You can get that entire set for free-including the makeup that goes along with it."

Hilary beamed at his words, no longer terrified. She loved the word 'free', but there was always some sort of catch.

"How about this," he faced Kai, "Since tomorrow is Halloween… If you two test out the new haunted house and you can have it all free of charge!"

"No thanks, I'd rather pay for it all." She smiled nervously up at Kai, knowing that he loved a challenge and all this stupid scary stuff. He quirked an eyebrow,

"You can afford three hundred dollars' worth of a costume?" The colour from her face drained once again.

"I can pay you back, Kai!" She frowned as he ignored her offer and focused his eyes on the freaky black door in the back of the room. "It doesn't look that bad."

Great.

"Alright kids, have fun!" the store keeper yelled to Kai and Hilary as they walked through the entrance. "If anything happens just press the red button I gave you!"

Before entering her doom, Hilary was given a small item that was shaped like a game controller with a red button on the top. If, let's say, she were to faint or have a heart attack, the man would be notified right away when Kai pressed the button.

On another note, Hilary wasn't exactly walking through the haunted house. Kai had a firm grip on her hand and dragged her behind him through the path.

"How did things come to this?" Hilary held her head down with tears flowing down her face, her arm still extended and being held by Kai.

"Quit whining." What a jerk.

They were engulfed by darkness; a faint blue tint in the area was Hilary's only hope of sight. It was silent. She quickened her pace so she was beside Kai and clung on to his arm with her life. He smiled, knowing she was scared shitless without having to look down at her.

"Ooooh." The hair on the back of her neck stood up as she heard a light whisper.

"W-what was that?" she asked in a hushed tone, bringing herself closer to Kai.

"Prepare yourself." Tears streamed down her face as she looked up at Kai while he spoke. "W-why-" her back stiffened when she felt a soft breath at the base of her neck.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" This time she was the one dragging Kai behind her as she flew through the house, moving as fast as her legs would take her. She ignored Kai laughing as he told her to stop running and just kept going faster.

Hilary finally stopped to catch her breath. She shut her eyes tightly so she couldn't see anything; she didn't care where they ended up. She lifted her head up when she heard Kai chuckling, "You good?"

"I hate this place! I wanna get out!"

"It's not that bad- look, there's nothing in here."

Hilary gradually opened her eyes, adjusting them to the new-found light. She had brought them to an empty room with a bright white light (AN: woohoo for rhyming!).

"W-where's the door?" Hilary scanned the room over and over trying to find a way out- but there was nothing.

"There's probably a secret exit somewhere." Kai stepped away from her and tapped the walls with his knuckle, trying to find a trigger. Hilary knelt to the ground and let Kai finish his investigating. She hugged her knees and shut her eyes, knowing something would eventually pop up.

"You know they're targeting you 'cause you're scared of everything." Shooting her eyes up at him, she gave Kai a glare.

"Maybe if you didn't sucker me into this I wouldn't be scared, now would I?"

Rolling his eyes, Kai continued knocking on the wall. He hit a certain spot and the block on the wall sunk in, opening a space in the wall for them to walk through. He turned back at Hilary and smirked when he saw what was behind her. Someone dressed in all black with a mask on hovered over her small body as she was kneeling on the floor.

"Hilary," he said softly, knowing that the masked person was aware he was spotted, "Get up slowly and run over."

He watched her body stiffen and her eyes opened wide towards him. Slowly standing to her feet, she was interrupted by something above her. As if life left her body, she looked up and came face to face with a monster. "Oh….My….AHHHHHHHHH!"

Hilary sprung to her feet and dashed towards Kai. She looked behind her and saw the monster chasing her. She grabbed onto Kai's sleeve and dragged him off with her into the black space in the wall, running and hiding her face from everything that jumped out at them. Kai wasn't scared in the least bit; if anything, he was enjoying this.

"Hang on a minute," he chuckled. Hilary was now shaking and scared out of her wits. She stayed as close to Kai as physically possible once they stopped, not wanting to be snuck up on again. Catching his breath, Kai rested his head on top of hers. "Why are you so scared?"

He felt how uneasy she was in this place and was beginning to feel bad for dragging her into it. "I-I don't like the dark." She said softly, clinging to the front of his shirt. He wrapped his arms protectively around her, feeling Hilary bring herself even closer to him.

"Alright, we'll go n-" Kai was cut short when he felt something crawling up his back. He spun around with Hilary still in his arms to see a pack of "_monsters"_ behind him. "Run!" He held her hand as they bolted through the path trying to outrun the things behind them. He weaved around large boulder looking objects on the path and came to an abrupt stop. Hilary was breathing heavily and panting. She looked up to see Kai's stunned expression. She followed his eyes and she, too, went wide-eyed. In front of them was a massive centipede raising its body up so they could see how tall it was. The mechanical bug let all its legs loose, wiggling and flailing them in the air.

Out of nowhere, Hilary felt herself being scooped up in Kai's arms as he ran with her out of the room. "That's fucking disgusting!" he shouted as he ran down out another door carrying Hilary like a football. He dodged everything that jumped out at him and ended up knocking some monster in the face with his fist. Kai saw a door up ahead and he picked up speed, running straight for it and slammed through the door with his body.

They emerged back into the store and were greeted by the store keeper, as well as some of the monsters in the house.

"Soo," the man began with a huge grin on his face, "What did you think?" Kai dropped Hilary to the floor as he fell to his knees, keeping himself up with his hands.

"Never," he said between heavy breaths, "Again."

Hilary was sitting on the floor cross-legged leaning over her lap breathing heavily. "Why would you make something like that?"

"Hm? Like what, miss?"

"That… That disgusting _thing!_"

"Oh!" he exclaimed, holding his hand out to one of the monsters, "This little guy?" He held up the 'monster' centipede- it was just a hand puppet. "We used his shadow to enlarge him! Awesome, isn't it?"

Kai glared at the man and the creature he was holding. 'I hate Halloween.'

The store keeper offered his hand to help Hilary back to her feet. A now unmasked monster offered his hand with a smile to Kai only to have it pushed away. "You disgust me."

"Alright kids," the man laughed, "As promised, here's your reward!" He handed Hilary two coat hangers with costumes attached to them. "Since you two didn't have to use the red button, you get an additional suit! Congratulations!"

An unmasked monster set off a small popper and confetti flew out from it. Although she was still shaken, Hilary gave the man a big smile and thanked him. She looked at the other costume and it was Mickey Mouse.

'Perfect for Kai!' There's no way she would show him, or even let him know what it was. It would be a surprise for him tomorrow.

"We should get back," Kai stated coldly, giving dirty looks to the haunted house cast. "It's almost time to head back."

Hilary nodded towards him and thanked the man again for the free stuff. Kai and Hilary walked out the door and made their way down the street where they saw the announcers face and a countdown on a large billboard.

"Come again any time!" The shop keeper stepped outside and yelled down to them. Kai looked over his shoulder and glared at the man in response.

They entered the building to find double the amount of people that were there a few hours earlier.

"How are we gonna find them?" Hilary asked Kai, following behind him as he pushed people out of his way. He led her to the seats they were sitting in before and, of course, he found them sitting.

"Hey, what did you buy?" Minori asked Hilary when she approached him, taking her seat. "I didn't buy anything- it was free!"

"Nice," Minori smiled, "Can I see?" Hilary dramatically pulled the bag to the other side of her, "Nope! You have to wait for tomorrow night."

"Uh, why?"

"Because it's Halloween, silly." Minori nodded, knowing she was too stubborn to cave in.

"Can the following make their way backstage, please," the announcer spoke into the microphone.

"Riku, Tamaki, and Hilary. Thank you."

The stage was set up a bit differently now. It was much larger and stretched out horizontally to either ends of the room. A large white screen was behind the setup playing back the duo performances to the audience.

Hilary stood to her feet, "I'll be back!" She smiled at her friends and gave Kai the two costumes, "Don't lose these, please!" She walked off to meet the other competitors back stage.

"This is how things are going to work from now on," the announcer walked on stage and his face was now showing on the screen. "We will be broadcasting this live on the billboard outside the building. The contestants will be doing the following- we have selected a limited amount of songs they may choose from and perform. After all acts are finished, you will all cast a vote." He held up a small panel in his hand, "You each have one of these under your chairs. You will push either button number 1, 2, or 3 to select your favourite performer. The order will be as follows: Riku, Hilary, and, lastly, Tamaki. The panel will not work until all performances are finished, so please refrain from pressing anything. We will begin in a matter of moments. Thank you."

Backstage people were running around to prepare everything for the final moments of the competition. A man ran over to Hilary and gave her a list with two stars beside songs. "Here," he handed her a pen, "Pick one of these songs and perform it. It will be your last one so pick wisely."

"O-okay," she said, scanning through the list. She didn't really recognize a majority of them- they didn't seem very modern. Her eyes stopped when she noticed a certain song that she knew all too well. She remembered her brother singing it to her as a child when she couldn't fall asleep. She drew a star beside the song and wrote her name so they knew it was her pick. She handed the list and pen back to the man.

He gave her a smile and took it from her. "Thank you," He ran off to finish his business.

Hilary stood on her own twiddling with her fingers. She rocked back and forth from the ball of her feet to her heels out of nerves.

'This is it,' she thought to herself, 'This decides everything.'

"Hey," a deep voice said. She turned to see Riku walking towards her with his hands in his pockets, "Good luck."

"Thanks," she gave him a warm smile, "You too."

"You shouldn't be so nervous, y'know." She turned her attention back to the boy, "You're really talented. If anything, I'm nervous to be competing against you."

He returned her smile as he tried to calm her nerves. She may have been a rival for the title, but she deserved to perform to her fullest without letting her emotions take over.

"First up, I'd like to invite Riku to the stage." The announcer's voice filled the air, along with the crowd's cheering.

"Here I go!" He gave her shoulder a light nudge while he ran up to the curtain.

"Good luck!" He waved back to her when he emerged on to the stage.

Hilary looked around and saw a band behind the curtain begin the song. 'So that's where they are.' She closed her eyes and listened to the soothing melody. Riku's voice later floated through the air, captivating the audience.

Moments went by and he finished off with a soft note, ending his song.

"Wow! Another amazing performance by Riku!" The crowd cheered and clapped loudly before his voice faded. Hilary poked her head out from behind the curtain as Riku was walking back, giving him a thumbs up.

"That was awesome!" she grinned and complimented his smiling face.

"Haha, thanks," he gave Hilary a high five and turned his attention back to the curtain as the announcer called Hilary out to the stage. "Good luck, missy."

Hilary nodded her head, mentally preparing herself for this. She thought her nerves got the best of her with the duet- boy was she wrong. Her palms began to sweat and her head felt light.

"Hilary, come on out!" she heard the announcer say, making her legs begin to tremble. Hilary slowly but surely walked up to the microphone in the centre of the stage and the room was silent. She nervously looked around as sweated beaded down the side of her face.

'So many people…' the man controlling the spotlight shone it right in her face, causing her to reach her arm up and block it from her eyes.

She felt someone standing close to her and looked up. The announcer was leaning over and quietly saying, "Don't be so nervous. Just let us know when you're ready."

Hilary nodded her head. She knew she had to do this sooner or later- might as well be before she hit the floor.

"Come on Hilary!" she looked down to see Tyson pumping his fist in the air, "Show 'em what you're made of!"

She smiled nervously at her friend, her eyes panned from him over to the opposite end of the row where Kai was sitting. He was looking up at her with a small smile. She looked beside Kai at Minori who was grinning from ear to ear, "Get a move on, lady!"

Even when she could barely walk properly she still managed to roll her eyes with ease. The lights began to dim and her breath quickened. Her eyes scanned the entire audience and her eyes fell on Hajime. He was sitting with his elbows on the desk, leaning over so his chin was resting on the top of his hands. He had no expression on his face whatsoever- he read blank.

Piano and violin played softly in the background, cuing her in for her part. Hilary nervously looked around once more and closed her eyes. She imagined herself running into her brother's room at midnight and jumping up on his bed. She snuggled in beside him and played with his hair, waking him up.

She remembered him trying to bring her back to her own bed, but she always refused. He would then try and soothe her with his words, but none of it worked. After a struggle, Gorou would lay Hilary on the pillow next to his as he sat on the bed, holding her hand. She remembered him looking down at her, protecting her and watching over her- kind of like he was doing now.

The music paused for a split second so Hilary could begin her song. Her eyes remained closed as she remembered Gorou singing to her, and she, too, began to sing;

_Your baby blues__  
><em>_So full of wonder__  
><em>_Your curly cues__  
><em>_Your contagious smile__  
><em>_And as I watch__  
><em>_You start to grow up__  
><em>_All I can do is hold you tight_

_Knowing clouds will rage__  
><em>_And storms will race in__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms__  
><em>_Rains will pour down__  
><em>_Waves will crash all around__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms__  
><em>

Kai, as always, was caught up in Hilary's voice and presence. 'That's where it's from,' Kai thought to himself, 'The lyrics I read on the kitchen table that day weren't really hers- they were her memories.'

_Story books full of fairy tales__  
><em>_Of kings and queens and the bluest skies__  
><em>_My heart is torn just in knowing__  
><em>_You'll someday see the truth from lies_

_Knowing clouds will rage__  
><em>_And storms will race in__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms__  
><em>_Rains will pour down__  
><em>_Waves will crash all around__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms_

_Castles they might crumble__  
><em>_Dreams may not come true__  
><em>_But you are never all alone__  
><em>_Because I will always__  
><em>_Always love you_

Hilary's eyes were still closed as she dragged on her note. She remembered hugging Gorou's arm as he sang to her and fiddled with her hair while she fell asleep.

_Clouds will rage__  
><em>_And storms will race in__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms__  
><em>_Rains will pour down__  
><em>_Waves will crash all around__  
><em>_But you will be safe in my arms_

_In my arms…_

The music faded seconds after Hilary finished off her note, leaving the space completely silent.

Hilary opened her eyes, slowly removing her hand from the microphone and looked around the silent room- nothing. Nobody was doing anything, when suddenly;

'_Clap, clap-'_

Hilary looked down in front of her to see Minori standing on his feet clapping his hands together. Kai followed suit, then Ray, and then rest of her friends. The clapping rose to cheering and shouting as the rest of the crowd stood from their seats to applaud her. Her eyes brimmed with tears of happiness while she bowed for her audience. She lifted her head back up, the light shining brightly on her face and making her eyes sparkle. The judges were all on their feet applauding her, even Hajime.

"Faaaaaaaaaaaaa~ntastic!" the announcer ran up to her and commented on her performance. "You've really captured everyone's heart today, young lady! Let's give it up for Hilary!"

Hilary took her leave after bowing once more and headed straight for her friends. She grinned and ran out the backstage door and out into the crowd. Like before, she received compliments and congratulations from members of the audience on her way to the front row.

"Hilary, that was beautiful!" yelled Ray when she was a few steps away from her friends. She blushed lightly and smiled.

"Yeah Hilary, that was amazing, like usual," smiled Minori and he pulled her into a friendly hug. He was so proud of her. He moved away from her and made space for whose opinion really mattered.

"What did you think?" Hilary beamed up at Kai, looking for his approval.

Kai smiled down to her and ruffled her hair with his hand, "Too great to put in words."

Her smile grew bigger with the touch of his hand- even though it was playing with her hair. She was congratulated by all her friends and got hugs from everyone, just like after the duet. She was so out of breath and just wanted this thing to end already.

"Last up will be Tamaki singing her song of choice," called out the announcer who, clearly, was _not _a fan of hers. "Unfortunately…"

Tamaki walked on stage with her usual strut and thinking she was top notch. She squeaked through her song within two minutes and attempted to dance when she finished. The crowd was completely silent and nobody was paying attention to her.

"A-alright folks, that's it for her," the announcer spoke when she finished her dreadful movements. He shoved her off backstage and walked back to the centre.

(AN: Couldn't think of enough negativity to fully write out what went down.)

"Ahem," he cleared his throat, "the panels are now working so you may cast your vote. You will be voting based on the order they performed: Riku being number 1, Hilary being number 2, and Tamaki being number 3. You have exactly one minute to vote," the large screen showed the number 60 on it and began to count down. "Go!"

Hilary sat with her friends impatiently and covered her eyes so she didn't see the votes. She felt butterflies in the pit of her stomach as she heard the final ten beeps of the timer before it buzzed.

"Thank you, everyone! We are now calculating the votes. In the meantime, I would like the contestants to come up on stage."

Hilary opened her eyes and got back to her feet. She smiled at each of her friends before proceeding to the stage.

"You've got this in the bag, Hil!" Tyson said with a grin.

"There's no way you could possibly lose this one!" Daichi threw his fist in the air, agreeing with Tyson.

"I really hope so, guys." Hilary gave a final smile to Kai before running up to the stage. Tamaki was obviously the first one up there posing and blowing kisses out to the audience. Riku casually walked up with a hand in his pocket and using the other to wave and acknowledge his fans. Hilary was the last up and the crowd roared with applause.

"Looks like we have an obvious winner." Hilary smiled at Riku as he spoke, hoping he was right.

"You never know," she said quietly, "You were amazing."

The three contestants stood side by side as they waited for the announcer to receive the results. Tamaki was overconfident and clapping to herself. Riku stood with his hands in his pockets uninterested. Meanwhile, Hilary was almost hyperventilating and trembling in her spot. Her whole body was shaking and she could feel herself freezing from her toes up. She felt like she was going to spontaneously combust.

A woman ran up to the side of the stage and the announcer ran over to her. She reached up to hand him a small blue envelop with the winner's name inside. He took it from her with a smile and walked back over to the awaiting contestants.

"Your results are in!" he yelled out to the audience while opening the envelop, "Dim the lights please."

As they were told, the people backstage dimmed the lights down and focused the spotlight down on the three waiting and the announcer. Hilary's back stiffened when he brought the microphone back to his mouth as he prepared to read the paper in his hand.

"And now, your winner…" The crowd silenced with anticipation. Kai was sitting up straight rather than slouching in his chair. He didn't know what she wanted or needed the money for, he just wanted her to win because… well, that's what someone wants for their loved one. Everyone was on edge for the final result- all her friends knew that she needed this prize to get even the smallest bit closer to her father's treatment.

"The winner of this year's main event is…"

Hilary clenched her hands together and her body felt cold with nerves. She watched as the announcer's lips move as he said the name of the winner. She dropped to her knees. Hilary's insides felt frozen- almost numb. Her eyes were widened in disbelief and her head began to spin.

Kai, as well as a majority of the crowd, stood to their feet in shock and disbelief. He ran up to the stage to Hilary as she continued to fall forward.

'I lost…'

"-Tamaki." The announcer's shocked voice trailed off into the distance and everything went black.

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Poor Hilary :( I feel like such a bad person for doing this to her. OH WELL. Also, I know the whole scene between the two sets of auditions wasn't all that necessary but there had to be something, right? Right.

So, on a good note, I totally demolished my Pokemon White game – beat it in 14 hours AW YEAH!

Meanwhile on a very upsetting note… my eyesight is shot from looking at the screen for so long and I have a migraine fml. Hopefully it was all worth it!

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and are looking forward to the next. I promise it will be very exciting for some of you.

Hint: Kai's rage won't be able to be contained any longer. Woohoo!

Song: In My Arms

Artist: Plumb

'Til next time!

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	16. Cupcakes

I have risen from the dead! It's been forever since I last updated... Truly ashamed of myself. As soon as I finished my next set of exams I was planning on writing the next chapter but SURPRISE! The next week there were second exams for each class fml. Terribly sorry everyone! I'll try to pick up from where I left off with the same amount of enthusiasm :)

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING D:

* * *

><p>Chapter 16:<p>

* * *

><p>Kai's POV<p>

* * *

><p>My jaw hit the floor. My widened eyes shifted from the announcer to Hilary; her expression reflected exactly what was going through my mind. The people around me appeared to be wondering the same thing with the same looks on their faces. The kid on stage next to Hilary was staring down at her absolutely shocked like the rest of us. My stare never left Hilary as she turned an unusual white shade and began to fall forward. Within seconds I was on my feet and rushing towards Hilary's collapsing body.<p>

I owe myself some praise for my fast reflexes and instinct sometimes. I managed to catch her in my arms before her entire self crashed to the floor. She hung loosely in my arms with her head against my chest. I pulled her in closer and tighter as I stood to my feet in attempt to support her. Her brown locks were blocking my view of her face with her head hung down.

"I can't believe I did it! Yippee!" I didn't bother acknowledging the obnoxious blonde behind me jumping around and congratulating herself on her immensely surprising victory. "Thank you everyone for this win!"

An all too familiar voice was heard from the crowd, "This is bullshit!" Tyson was full of rage and now on his feet. Daichi followed suit, "How could this cow beat Hilary?"

"I..." I tilted my chin down to look at the lifeless girl in my arms as she started to speak in a hushed tone, "I don't understand. I don't understand. I-"

I felt her shiver in my arms and listened as she repeated the same thing over and over to me, her voice cracking up. I picked her up into my arms bridal-style and held on like my life depended on it. Without speaking, she nuzzled herself into my chest and began to sob. Her small frame was still shaking and would slightly jolt every so often when she tried to breathe in.

I walked down the stairs with her and through the centre of the crowd. Tyson and the others followed behind me towards the back door, leaving the protesting audience behind us. The announcer turned off his microphone and walked off stage with an outraged Riku. Although he was a contestant, too, he knew that Hilary deserved the winning title- not the twit.

"Congratulations to this year's winner, Tamaki!"

I froze in place. My team came to a halt as well and turned around to see the aggravating rock star up on stage congratulating her. I clenched my teeth together without looking back and proceeded out the door. This was probably the best thing I could do in the situation, because otherwise I would have beaten him until he was nothing but a corpse.

Hilary continued to quietly sob in my arms, murmuring random things that I couldn't make out. I walked out to the lobby where there were couches lined against the walls and in the middle of the floor. Typical me, I chose the one farthest away from everything along the wall and sat with her curled up on my lap. My heart ached as I helplessly watched the love of my life crying uncontrollably. It always came down to this- there was nothing I could do to make things better for her. I removed my arm that was still holding on to her legs and wrapped it around her torso, pulling her in closer. I tried to position her upward so it wasn't uncomfortable but she was still limp. I managed to get her somewhat sitting up with her face buried below my shoulder.

"Hilary..." I tried to softly push her away from my body so I could at least look at her. She wrapped her arms below my around my chest so I couldn't budge her. 'She's a lot stronger than she looks.'

"Hilary," I tried again, "Let me look at you."

She pressed her face harder into my chest and shook her head- a clear indication that she wasn't going to cooperate.

I let out a soft sigh, admitting my defeat and rested my cheek on her soft hair. I continued to hold her close. Looks like I have to be comforting this time around.

"Listen, everyone knows you have the most amazing voice and nothing can compare. You have a talent that is a once in a lifetime opportunity to experience and you should embrace it no matter what the outcome of this competition was. Tamaki didn't deserve to win, that's obvious fact even to you, but you shouldn't let that make you like this."

Her grip around me loosened up as she listened to my words. "Nobody is more deserving of the best then you, Hilary. Don't be so upset, there will be other chances-"

"No." She interrupted my speech with a soft whisper.

"What?" I lifted my head from hers and moved back to look at her. Hilary's ruby eyes were glistening with tears and her lip was quivering. My hand seemed to have a mind of its own as it cupped her pink tinted cheek.

"Th-there won't be another chance. This was my only hope." I was happy she managed to choke some words out in response rather than continue to cry.

"What do you mean?"

Her eyes were now gazing into mine- I felt a shiver shoot up my spine when I felt the pain she was going through. One thing about Hilary was for sure; her eyes could never tell a lie. She was devastated beyond belief.

"M-my dad needs to go in for special treatment at the h-hospital but w-we can't afford it and now h-he...he..." Her lip quivered fiercely and her eyes welled up with an unbelievable amount of tears. She slammed herself back against my chest and sobbed like she had before.

How could I have been so stupid? The whole reason she took part in this waste-of-time contest was so she could use the money to help save her father. Her family didn't have that great of an income so obviously there would be struggles with over the top health care like this. 'Why didn't I realize it sooner?' If I wasn't immune to tears, they would have been falling down my cheeks, too.

"Let me back in there!" I looked across the room at the commotion going on by the entrance door to the competition. Max and Tyson were being dragged out by security guards by their shirts.

"Give me another shot at him!" Tyson raised his fist in the air, trying to pull himself free of the beast.

"Sorry kid, no can do," said the guard holding Max, "Any threats towards Mr. Hajime are an immediate removal of the individual."

"Let me go! I didn't even say anything!" Daichi and Kenny were dragged by their shirts out shortly after the other two were.

"You're a team, so all for one and one for all." My team was thrown out the door by the laughing security guards. Ray quietly walked out heaving a sigh.

"Could you guys not try to start something?"

"It's his fault!" Daichi yelled, "Hajime is just so jealous of Kai that he had to hurt Hilary!"

"Yeah! He's a no good, dirty rotten piece of- Kai!" I stared blankly at my team with what I tried to portray as a look of disapproval. They hurried over to where I was sitting with Hilary, exchanging worried looks.

"How is she?" Ray sat down beside me and rubbed Hilary's back.

I moved my arm slightly to get Hilary to move; or at least see if she was still alive. I leaned down closer to her face and heard soft breaths escaping from her lips. "She fell asleep."

Max sat down across from us on the opposite couch with a frown. "Poor Hilary, she tried her best but she wasn't awarded for all her hard work."

"It's that damn Hajime's fault," Tyson clutched his fists and stared at the door he was just dragged out of. "If it wasn't for him, everything would be okay for her!"

"How much is it?" I asked, earning confused looks from my teammates.

"How much is what, Kai?" Kenny asked.

"How much is it for her father's treatment? She mentioned something about it earlier."

Everyone went silent. That was certainly new for my team. They all looked to the floor, not wanting to say anything to me. Why not? I deserve to know about whatever is going on, too.

"Well?"

"She didn't want us to tell you. She knew you would worry too much and probably do something irrational."

I had to congratulate Ray for being the only one with balls amongst the others.

"How much is it?"

"We can't tell you. We promised Hilary that we wouldn't."

Frustration began to build up inside me as my question continued to be avoided. What was so hard about telling me? It's not like I wouldn't help her.

"It's 3 million." My attention, as well as my team's, turned towards a voice and staggering body leaving from the contest room. Minori had a black eye and his nose was bleeding.

"What the hell happened?" Ray was the first to open his big mouth.

"I went and had a _chat _with Hajime," Minori advanced towards us, wiping the blood from his upper lip with a smirk. "He didn't like what I had to say so he attacked me."

"What did you say?"

Minori looked over at Tyson to answer his question, rubbing his bruised eye. "Long story short, I told him to pull his head out of his ass and get over his childish jealousy. It's disgusting how immature he can be when he doesn't get his own way."

He walked towards me and leaned down to Hilary. "She's hurt pretty badly, huh?" He softly rubbed her red, swollen eyes with his index finger and patted her head. "The whole thing was rigged," he stood straight and faced me, "Hajime planned this all out from the start. At first he felt as if she was stolen from him by you, Kai. But something triggered inside of him to turn on Hilary because it became her fault that she let herself get away. She was the only friend we ever had, so I'm guessing as soon as I left he was engulfed with loneliness and didn't have anyone to rely on."

"So his brilliant plan was to hurt her? That doesn't make any sense," Max began, "Hilary was nothing but kind to him and believed in everything he did."

I couldn't take it anymore. I gently lifted Hilary from my lap and placed her beside me on the couch. I stood to my feet before anyone could say a word and strode over to the door. Hajime made the biggest mistake of his life hurting Hilary. I don't care if he thinks I took her or whatever the fuck he's whining about. She's _mine,_ and if he can't handle it then he's shit out of luck.

"Kai!" Ray called my name, "What are you doing?"

I turned the knob on the door and turned around before I opened it. "Something I should have from day one."

"Oh boy..." Kenny's voice was the last thing I heard before the door shut behind me.

I did my best to keep my fists tight to my sides to control myself. I pushed through the audience in search of Ha-fuck-face. I could feel my pulse racing and my palms were sweating. I looked at the stage to find no one there but a few members of the audience fooling around with the microphones. The crowd had scattered around the room discussing the disbelief of Hilary's loss and my banishment from the entire thing. My eyes set on the judge's table. 'One, two, three...' One of them was missing. I jumped up to the platform they were seated on,

"Where's the other judge?" I demanded.

The woman lowered her glasses to focus on me, "He left a while ago to the producing room. What business do you have with him?"

I ignored her and jumped back to the floor. Now that I knew where my target was, there was no way in hell I would stop for anything or anyone. I ran over to the elevator and impatiently pushed the button- I don't even know how many times it was. I heard a bell and looked above the elevator to see that it was stopped at the 5th floor. 'UGH!'

I abandoned my spot to bolt up the stairs, hoping my legs would prove to be more useful. I reached the producing floor and, to my surprise, it appeared to be empty. I stepped inside, my eyes panning every inch of the room in hopes to see what I was looking for.

"You aren't allowed in here." I glared in the direction of a sick, twisted voice. 'Found you.'

"You heard me, turn around and leave." Hajime stepped out of the small recording room with his hands in his pockets and an arrogant smirk on his face. He looked at me with taunting eyes, as if daring me to charge at him.

"Look," he took his hands out of his pockets and held them out, "I'm sorry you were cut from the competition but there's no use in begging for another chance."

Was this guy stupid or what?

I tightened my fists even more, drawing blood from where my nails dug into my palms. I kept a calm face, "Don't interfere."

Hajime lowered his hands and continued to smile. "What was that?"

"Don't interfere with her life." And like that his smile vanished. I knew exactly what could make him tick. As we speak, he's simply a timed bomb waiting to go off and, once it does, that'll be my chance.

In a split second I glanced up at security cameras placed in the room then back down to the idiot in front of me.

"What the hell did you just say?" His eye twitched and a large vein looked like it was going to pop out from his neck.

"She was happy without you." I made sure to keep my face emotionless and unreadable – like always – so it irritated him more. Hajime clenched his teeth together and balled his hands into fists.

"Shut up."

"You initially planned to hurt her so she would go running into your arms, right? You're pathetic."

Hajime's face flushed out of anger and his light breaths became loud pants. "Shut the hell up."

"Your whole life consisted of you hurting her and making her cry. In reality, she just pitied a waste of life like you."

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

No wonder girls use their words to fight instead of their fists. Hell, I could take a brick to the face no problem but this taunting is enough to drive someone mad.

"You're nothing more than a jealou-"

"NO! SHUT UP!" He finally snapped.

"Don't think you know shit all about my life with her! She was awful to me! Always abandoned me for my brother and always talked about her stupid brother. I'm glad he's dead." Hajime smirked and regained his calm, "She was nothing more than a useless tool for me to step on to get to where I am now."

My glare intensified as he turned the tables. 'Manipulative creep.'

"That bitch whined and complained about how she lost her brother all the time. God, I was so happy when we were apart. Her asshole of a brother hated me and not Minori," he clenched his fists once more as the thoughts in his head seemed to ramble on. "I was the nice one! I respected everyone and was a good kid. Minori took her away from me and then," he glared back at me with the same eyes I was holding for him, "then _you _came along and ruined everything."

"She doesn't belong to you. Hila-"

Before I could say her name I heard a growl escape Hajime's throat. He was so obsessed with her that even the sound of her name was unbearable. He was actually insane. I smirked to myself.

"What? Are you jealous that _Hilary _is always with me?"

The anger built back up in Hajime and his breathing returned to loud, uneven pants through his clenched teeth.

"I loved her!" he shouted to me. I was taken aback by his sudden outburst as it didn't fit in with anything he was portraying.

"You loved to hurt her." Hajime's eyes widened at my statement.

"N-no!"

"You're so ashamed of how worthless you are so you found someone that would love you unconditionally to take it out on."

"NO!" with that Hajime lunged towards me with his fist ready to make contact with my face. I dodged it and slammed my fist into his stomach, sending him flying. Before Hajime had a chance to get back up I stepped on his chest with my foot and glared down at him. He grabbed onto my foot with both his hands and tried to break free.

"Get off me you faggot!" I smirked down at the pest beneath my foot,

"Big bark for a little bitch."

He somehow got from under my weight began swinging his fists at me uncontrollably. I dodged every one of his blows and leaped backwards to the door. I heard footsteps from the other side.

"Are you running away, pansy ass?"

I moved away from the door in time as a large group of people slammed it open. One large man grabbed hold of Hajime before he could charge my way again and pinned him to the floor. Another man gave me a nod, knowing I was able of making my way out the door on my own.

"What's going on in here?" the producer rushed in and went straight to Hajime, asking if he was hurt.

"He attacked me!" Here come the lies, "Out of nowhere he came in here and threw me out of the recording room! He was mad when I explained he wasn't able to be a part of the show any longer!"

I rolled my eyes, "Your ass must be jealous of all the shit that comes out of your mouth."

He tried to pull himself free of the man's grip, but to no avail. "What about you?" the producer looked at me accusingly.

I simply shrugged my shoulders, "Watch the security tapes to find out what happened."

Hajime was dragged out by the security guards and shot murderous looks at me. "I'll sue you for this!"

The security guard tightening his grip on Hajime's arms and replied, "You can't sue for something you provoked."

When the room was empty I followed behind them and went back to where I left Hilary and my team. Hilary... she needs 3 million dollars to pay for her father's expenses. I wonder how close she is to her goal- probably not very close at all. It's impossible to try and negotiate with that particular hospital since it used to belong to my grandfather as a training facility.

I found my team sitting in the same spot I left them half an hour or so ago. Their eyes were stuck on the screaming Hajime being escorted out of the building by multiple men. I approached my previous spot where Hilary was still sleeping and their attention then came to me.

"What the hell happened Kai!" Tyson shouted in shock, "What went down?"

I smirked over at Minori and he smiled back with a nod. At least there was someone that understood my quiet ways.

"Nothing. He got out of line."

* * *

><p>I got my assistant to come pick up Hilary and myself to bring us to her house. She was awake but didn't seem like she was all there. She sat as close to me as she possibly could and loosely held on to my hand. When we arrived, I helped her out of the car and held on to her waist up the driveway. I've seen Hilary upset but this is the first time I've seen her broken. We walked into the empty house together. I brought her into the living room and sat her down on the couch.<p>

"Are you hungry? I can make you something to eat." I knelt down in front of her so we were eye to eye. She didn't respond to my question so I took that as I yes. I stood to my feet but was stopped when I tried to turn to walk away. She held on to my hand and wouldn't let me go. "Hilary, you have to eat something."

She shook her head quietly and bit her bottom lip. I sighed to myself and sat down beside her. "Can I go with you?"

There is a God! It took a few hours for her to speak to me again. "Of course you can." I smiled at her and swept her off the couch into my arms like I did before. She smiled and hung on to my neck as I carried her into the kitchen. I sat her on the counter under the cupboards, "What would you like, miss?"

Her arms were still around my neck while she giggled at me, "Anything, kind sir." Nothing made me happier than to see her smile. I reached above her head to open the cupboard and pull down a few ingredients. I felt her soft hand touch my bicep and run her fingers along it.

"You have a huge bruise," I looked down at her worried face, "What happened?"

I shrugged my shoulders to show her it wasn't a big deal, "Got in a fight with some fairy."

Hilary raised her eyebrow at me, "A fairy?" I smirked and winked at her, happy she was coming back to her usual self. "You got it."

I walked to the other side of the fridge and opened up the bottom cupboards looking for a bowl. I knew what her favourite was, so hopefully that'll brighten things up for her. I started pouring in different ingredients in one bowl and another few things in a separate one. I can remember my mother doing this at home a long time ago; she would separate the dry ingredients from the wet ones, and then combine them in the end.

As a child, cupcakes were my favourite thing to eat, too. It's a little feminine if I do say so myself, but what's better than something made from the heart?

I glanced over to Hilary to see what she was doing- she was never quiet. Ever. She was swinging her legs and watching me intently as I tried to concoct my invention.

"What are you making?"

"Can't tell." She jumped off the counter and came closer to me. I turned my back to her so she couldn't see. "Come on, Kai, let me see."

"No." I moved to the other side as she did to block her. Sighing as a sign of defeat, she sat at the kitchen table and turned on the mini television. She flipped through channels until something familiar caught her attention. There was a broadcast about the competition earlier on and something happening behind the scenes.

My ears twitched when I heard the news woman say '_A quarrel unraveled in the production room of a popular music company building. Two young men, one being famous rock star Hajime, went at it after what seemed to have been a long conversation. We have the footage here.'_

The screen changed to a black and white surveillance video of two people talking, and then violently fighting. I sweat-dropped and avoided looking at Hilary as she leaned in closer to the television.

"Hey Kai," I cringed. "Look, there was a fight today at the music studio!"

"Hn." Not like I had anything better to say. Hilary leaned in even closer to try and make out who it was but I unplugged the television from the wall. "Hey!"

'Oops.' I smiled to myself about my intelligence. "Guess the power went out."

"But I paid the bill-" I stuck my finger in the bowl of my mixture and dabbed some batter on Hilary's nose. She crossed her eyes to stare at her nose then looked up at me in confusion. I smiled triumphantly for more than one reason – mostly being that I distracted her – and licked the rest of the batter off my finger.

Hilary wiped it off her nose and tasted for herself. "It tastes like sand paper." She stuck her tongue out and giggled at my flushed face. Curse my mother for having the tendency to blush like a tomato over the smallest things.

"But I guess this is acceptable, servant." I raised my eyebrow at her statement. Me? A servant? Not in this lifetime.

"I'm so honoured, your highness." My voice dripped with sarcasm, which only made her smile more. She walked to the cupboard and pulled down a small box of pink sprinkles and mixed them into my batter.

"There, now they're full of love from both of us."

Curse my mother and her powerful genes as my face turned pink once more. Mine and Hilary's love combined together to make something that makes us both happy?

I smiled softly back at her from the bottom of my heart.

I like that thought.

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Okay, poopy ending, I admit. OH WELL. The fight scene did NOT turn out the way I originally planned it to but I typed as the words came to mind so please forgive me for that.

No, Kai was not being a duhty pervert in the last thing he said- it was sentimental and special for him to think of a possible future with Hilary. AWW so cute :3

Thank you for all the updates, guys! I'll have the next one up soon! (and this time I promise).

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	17. Light Switch

I have the tendency of swearing a lot... I swear I'm not a truck driver. Honest.

Thank you for the reviews, everyone!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

* * *

><p>Chapter 17:<p>

A few days have gone by since the finale of the competition. Nobody had heard from Hajime since then, not that it was something they were concerned about. Halloween had come and gone, and it was now November 2nd.

"I can't believe you made me do that." Kai sat beside Hilary on the living room couch frowning while they looked through their Halloween pictures. Hilary giggled to herself at the picture of Kai in her hand. She managed to get Kai to agree to wear his Mickey Mouse costume- ears and all- and answer the door to trick-or-treaters.

"But you made such a good Mickey Mouse! The kids loved it." She continued her giggling fits as she looked at the next picture. It was an action shot of Kai handing out candy to a little girl dressed as an angel and what looked like her brother dressed as a devil. Kai, of course, didn't show any emotion whatsoever as he handed the two a handful of candy each.

The next picture was of them together that she made Kai take. The picture was crooked, as Kai had to hold it up facing them to get their faces together and seeing as Hilary was too small, it wouldn't have captured them both. Hilary had on her Minnie Mouse ears, along with the outfit, and had a black dot for a nose with whiskers. Kai stood beside her with the same ears and facial paint on, as well as Mickey's overalls and black t-shirt.

"Aww, we look so cute!" Kai rolled his eyes and covered his face with his hand out of shame. 'The things she makes me do.'

His eyes squinted when she came across the last picture. He was giving out candy when a strangely familiar group of people came to the door. They were all dressed up as vampires- well, if you consider fake teeth dressing up. He made the mistake of making eye contact with the bluenette of the group. His team laughed hysterically while they walked into Hilary's house at Kai's get-up. Tyson and Daichi were in tears while the other three tried their hardest to maintain their composure. Kai had his eyes shut and facing downward with his arms folded. He growled under his breath and his eyebrow twitched from his idiotic teammates. Have they never seen a guy go on a limb for a girl before? Hilary snapped the camera at the moment Kai's cheeks turned a little pink and he was having a fit. The team was surrounding Kai in the picture laughing and crying at the same time while their captain was ready to kill.

Hilary placed all their photos in a small album with a spider and other ghoulish things on the front. There was a small spot in the front under the huge spider for a photo to go in. Hilary slid the one Kai took in there and held it out in front of them smiling. All their memories of Halloween would be remembered forever- not to mention it would be perfect blackmail.

Kai smiled at the cheerful girl beside him hugging her album. He was happy that she could smile on her own without his interference of any sort. He had to admit his heart almost snapped in two when she wasn't smiling and moping around the place. His smile soon vanished when another thought barged in to his mind.

"I'll be back," he stood to his feet and spun on his heel towards the door.

Hilary stared blankly at his sudden leave. She, too, stood to her feet, "I-I'm sorry! I can get rid of the pictures you don't like."

Kai turned his torso to face her and shook his head, "It's not that. I have some business matters to take care of. I'll be back in an hour. Do you want me to take you to Tyson's?"

She still didn't understand what he was up to. Rather than causing a scene, she grinned and nodded her head. "Sure!"

It was mid-afternoon and the sun was already beginning to set. Winter sure came early this year- the chill in the air was enough to stiffen your body in seconds. The two ventured down the streets of Bakuten in Kai's car over to the dojo. Hilary's curiosity was getting the best of her, but she didn't want to come across as nosey. She stared at Kai's face as he slowed down to a stop light, realizing that he didn't have his shark fins painted on his face. She saw his bare face only once before during the night, it's amazed her ever since. His skin was so fair and was as soft as silk.

"Um," Kai interrupted her thoughts, "If you miss Pochie so much we can go get him."

Hilary's face flushed red when she realized what she was doing. While she was admiring Kai's gentle masculine features she had reached over and was stroking his cheek with the back of her hand. She tucked her hands in her pockets and sharply turned to face the window. Kai chuckled to himself and accelerated forward when the light turned green.

'How embarrassing! What was I thinking?'

They arrived at the dojo shortly after. To Hilary, however, it was one of those longer, more awkward moments of life. Kai didn't seem to mind though- actually, he seemed completely unaffected by the whole thing. 'Maybe it wasn't such a big deal after all.'

Kai unlocked all the doors so Hilary could exit. He smiled inwardly at how tense she had been for the past two minutes. Hilary wasn't one to get so worked up about something so he didn't understand why this was such a big thing for her.

"Hilary," she jumped slightly at the sudden sound of his voice. She was so embarrassed after what she did that she didn't really know what else to say to him.

"I'm sorry!" she bowed her head as she apologized, not looking up from her legs. "I shouldn't have done that and I'm sorry."

She didn't lift her head back up until she heard Kai snort and laugh louder than usual- for him, at least. Hilary gave him a confused look while he continued to laugh and rested his elbow against the top of his wheel and leaned his forehead to his palm. She continued to look at Kai as he finished off his abnormal laughing fit. Without moving from his spot he shifted his eyes to her and gave a small smile.

"What's gotten you so worked up?" The blush on Hilary's cheeks was impossible to hide. She couldn't help herself; Kai had the most beautiful eyes. Her thoughts were endless on how perfect Kai was in every single way. Kai leaned back in his seat regaining his posture, not breaking eye contact.

"Hilary," she snapped out of her thoughts once more and her eyes dazed over when she stared into his, "You don't need to be so formal with me. You never have before- what's the sudden need to now?"

The butterflies began to flutter in Hilary's stomach and she couldn't contain herself. The words wouldn't come out of her mouth. Without answering his question, she opened the door as fast as she could and hopped out, slamming it shut.

"Bye!" She laughed nervously and waved to him before running up to Tyson's dojo. Kai lifted an eyebrow at the scene in front of him. Was this some kind of joke? He waved awkwardly back,

"I'll pick you up later." He wasn't sure if she heard him or not, but it didn't matter. He knew she would be waiting for him to come back and bring her home. "Out of everything I've experienced," Kai spoke to himself, "That was the strangest moment of my life."

He sped off into the direction of his destination. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but he was going to make this work.

Hilary sprinted up to the dojo doors and swung them open. Everyone was there, as per usual, sitting around on the floor talking and tinkering with their blades.

"Morning guys," Hilary returned the smiles her friends gave her. "Morning Hil, what are you doing here so early?"

Hilary shrugged her shoulders but still couldn't seem to hide the blush creeping to her face. "Kai dropped me off because he had some business to take care of."

Oh Ray, how dare you be the only one that wasn't oblivious in the room. He gave her a smirk, "He didn't want you home by yourself, huh? What a gentleman."

She rolled her eyes and pretended not to care about his comment. "Gentleman? Whatever. What have you guys been up to all morning?" Hilary was smooth at time, but her avoidance of the topic didn't go past Ray.

"Nothing really-Oh!" Daichi replied, "We got something made for Kai's birthday. Want to see?"

Tyson smirked evilly with Daichi while the giggling Max went to another room to bring out the surprise. "Hil," Tyson began, "You have to promise not to tell Kai or even mention it, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," Hilary fanned her hand in front of herself, "I won't tell. What is it?"

Ray snorted, "You'll love it, trust me." Now this better be good...

Max came walking out with a blown-up picture framed in his hands. It was almost as tall as he was and as wide as an arm span.

It was good.

* * *

><p>Kai pulled up into a parking lot and parked his car closest to a large building. He stepped out of his car, putting the alarm on it as he advanced towards the front doors. The wind had picked up quite a bit from earlier and his scarf was madly blowing around behind him. Upon entering the building, Kai came across the same plastic snot that tried to hit on him when he was with Hilary.<p>

"Hello handsome," the snot said with a wink, "What brings you here today?"

"Where's Mr. Tatibana's room?" He had no time for her nonsense.

The girl gave a huff of disappointment and pointed down the hall to Kai's left, "Down there, you'll see his name on the door."

"Hn." Kai briskly walked down the hall, looking at all the doors to his left. He at least remembered which side the man's room was. He approached the second last door and it read _Tatibana, _'Finally.'

Kai knocked on the door and awaited an answer. He wasn't exactly sure what he was going to say when he saw Hilary's parents- it had been a while. Moments later Hilary's mother opened the door and gave an instant smile.

"Oh, Kai, hello! Come on in." She greeted him like it was her home, which wasn't a pleasant feeling for Kai in the least. It was sad how long they had to spend their time in the hospital.

"Honey," she walked over to her husband lying in bed and sat on the chair beside him, "Kai came to visit us."

Hilary's father sat up in his bed and strained his eyes on Kai, trying to remember him. It was quite some time since they last saw one another and considering his memory was slowly fading, it was hard to make out certain names.

"Kai?" he asked in a drained voice, "Kai?"

"Yes," Kai approached the bed, "I came here before with your daughter, Hilary."

"Hilary," the man gave a small sigh and smiled at the ceiling, "My beautiful daughter. How is she?"

Kai looked at Hilary's mom then back at her dad with a smile, "She's fine, sir. She was recently in a talent competition."

"We watched that on TV," he looked back at her mom, "We were so disappointed when she lost to that no-talent bouncy idiot."

Kai gave a nod, understanding exactly what she meant. It must have been hard having to watch your child perform for the first time in her life from a hospital room and watch her crumble on stage.

"You sang with her," Hilary's father spoke again, almost as a question, "Your voices were perfect together."

"Thank you, sir. But I have something to discuss with you." He turned to Hilary's mom once more, waiting for her permission. "It's about the treatment."

* * *

><p>Hilary was almost rolling around on the floor in tears laughing uncontrollably. When Max revealed the picture, everyone in the room started to laugh.<p>

"Ahaha, you're kidding me!" Hilary held her stomach while she continued to laugh at Kai's priceless face on the picture. She was wondering where one picture had disappeared to.

The team decided it would be a great idea to blow-up a picture of Kai dressed in his Mickey Mouse costume and frame it for him. Kai was, unfortunately, standing alone in the picture and posing with one hand on his hip and the other making the 'peace' symbol with his fingers across his forehead (AN: kind of like Sailor Moon LOL). Hilary had somehow gotten Kai to pose for her in a split second so she could take a funny picture to show her family how much fun she was having with Kai. Hilary complained to Kai about how her brother was always calling her cell phone asking if she was okay and worrying about how upset she possibly was. Kai, being the sweetheart that he was- not to mention having the biggest soft spot for Hilary- agreed to do a single shot for her. He didn't look in the least bit happy, but his miserable expression made it a hundred times funnier.

"He's going to kill you!"

* * *

><p>"I see," Kai looked at Hilary's father with understanding eyes as he explained his opinion of the whole thing.<p>

"It's selfish of me to think this way, but it might be better for my children. Who wants a father that can only remember everything, including how to speak, any random moment in time? I forgot who my own daughter was once and hurt her in ways I can never make amends for." His eyes began to water when he mentioned hurting Hilary. He never wanted to hurt his family, especially his little girl.

"I already lost one son. I could have lost my only daughter that day, too. Kai," Kai's attention became stern as he was bracing himself to take in what the weak man in front of him was about to say, "Man to man, I don't think I'll make it no matter what treatment they may be able to give me on my family's budget."

Kai's heart almost sunk to his stomach when he heard him say such words. Had he no pride or hope whatsoever? What about his family?

"That's a weak thing to say." Kai didn't mean to say it, but the words came out. "You have a family to protect, sir. And since we're speaking man to man, I find it weak to belittle yourself in such ways. Excuse my language, but shit happens, find a way to make a bridge and get over it."

"There isn't anything we can do though," Hilary's mother said, holding back her tears, "No matter how right you are, we've already done all we can."

"That's why I'm here right now." Kai closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. If Hilary's family was as stubborn as she was, then there was no way in hell this would work out the way he wants it to.

"I can pay off the full amount of the treatment and have them reimburse half the amount paid into it."

If her jaw wasn't properly attached, it would have dropped off her face and hit the floor. "W-what?"

"I will pay off the full amount of his treatment and give you the reimbursement to pick up from where you left off before you stepped foot into the hospital. It will be more beneficial for your family and you won't have to worry yourselves over small bull payments that may add up."

"You can't do that. I won't allow it." Kai took in Hilary's father's stern eyes as he declared his refusal.

'Figures.' "Sir, if you won't accept it for yourself, then accept this as a helping hand for your children. Think of their future if you were not here to help them. Plus, with the money you receive after the treatment you can put it towards their schooling."

"Kai, this is very generous of you but we cannot accept your offer. You're so young and you need this for yourself."

"Don't take this the wrong way, Mrs. Tatibana, but I'm not selfish. I have my life planned already and this is merely pocket money. Please accept it as my thanks for allowing me to take care of your daughter and home."

Hilary's father stared at his wife as tears welled up in his eyes. This was the opportunity to life he was looking for all this time. Never once did he think it would come from a teenage boy that was friends with his daughter. Hilary's mother stood to her feet and couldn't hold in her tears any longer. She let out a loud cry and hugged Kai as tightly as she could. She and her husband hadn't known this boy for very long, but he brought such large amounts of hope into their lives- especially their Hilary's. Even from the beginning she thought of Kai as a son.

"Thank you."

* * *

><p>Kai pulled his car up in front of Tyson's house and parked along the curb. He was hoping that within the time he was gone that Hilary stopped acting like a fool and they could have a normal conversation. He turned the key and pulled it out of the car, leaning forward and sighing. 'It's probably better if she didn't find out.'<p>

He couldn't even imagine what Hilary would think or do if she found out he went to talk to her parents secretly. It wasn't like he was doing anything wrong, he was helping her out in a tough spot- it's what friends do. 'Even so...'

Kai sighed again as he slid open the dojo doors. 'This _is _Hilary I'm talking about.'

When he stepped into the room all eyes were on him. They usually were in any case, however, this time there was a strange feeling in the air. He glared daggers into the bunch in the room who only continued to stare and started snickering.

"What?"

"You ready to go?" Hilary smiled at Kai happily. A little too happy in his opinion. Kai slightly squinted his eyes at her, suspecting her of something and nodded his head skeptically.

"Where are you two sailor scouts off to?" Tyson clubbed Daichi in the head with his fist for almost giving away their secret. Everyone's laughs became a little louder; Ray ended up being the loudest and had to cover his mouth and turn away from Kai. Hilary snorted and covered her mouth and look away, too. 'This is too much.'

Kai raised his eyebrow at everyone and looked at them like they were all idiots. "What the hell happened when I was gone?"

"NOTHING!" Max accidently shouted between laughs trying to keep his voice down, "GO!"

Kai gave one last glare at his team and turned to walk away. Hilary turned to wave good bye to her friends and saw them all mocking Kai's pose and laughing hysterically. Hilary let out one last burst of laughter and followed Kai out the door.

'I wonder what he's going to do to them when he sees it,' Hilary thought to herself, bringing her hand to her mouth to cover some giggles.

Kai slumped into the car and locked the doors before Hilary could make it there. "What the hell Kai?" Hilary pouted and smushed her face against the window staring in at Kai, begging him to let her in. He opened the passenger window a crack so she could hear him, "What's so funny?"

Her pout, as well as her eyes, grew larger and pressed her face even harder against the window. Her breath was leaving a fog mark against the glass. Kai sweat-dropped at the creature outside his car. "If you're not telling me then enjoy your walk home."

Hilary gasped and used her drama skills to make herself tear up. She knew Kai was a sucker when it came to her crying, she would be stupid not to. "O-oh, okay," she lowered her head and pouted.

Kai's eyebrow twitched and he unlocked the doors, growling under his breath. He hated how no matter what she did, even if it was something he didn't like, he would give her the win. Hilary grinned and hopped in the car and put on her seatbelt. She was able to distract Kai from all the laughter with stories about what she dreamt of the night before and the fight between Hajime and someone at the music building. To Kai's delight Hilary still didn't recognize that it was him and therefore, he was safe from those particular nags for the time being.

He pulled up into her driveway and followed her into the house. The place was an absolute disgrace; Halloween decorations were still up, candy was all over the place and Hilary's laundry still hadn't been folded from the night before.

"Tomorrow we'll take down the decorations." Kai stated, already taking control of tomorrow's schedule. "As for now, fold your laundry. You're not a packrat."

"But Kai~!" Hilary whined in objection to his demands. "Can't I do that tomorrow, too?"

"No. I'm going upstairs for a bit," he turned and walked to the stairs. He put one foot on the first stare and shot her a glare, "Get it done." He knew her too well. Even after he finished telling her that she had to clean up a bit she was already making her way to the kitchen to make a snack. He smiled to himself as he walked up the stairs and heard Hilary flop to the couch cursing him. 'Whatever works.'

"Stupid Kai, thinking he's the boss around here." Hilary angrily folded one of her shirts and started her laundry pile on the couch. "Thinks he's like the television remote and has control over everything in his path-" she paused and pulled out one of Kai's shirts from her pile of clean laundry. She grasped it tightly in her palm and her eyes glowed with rage. "Well he DOESN'T!" She threw the shirt across the room in her fits of anger, wrinkling it all over again.

"Well this is just great," she put one hand on her hip and used the other to smack her forehead, "Even when he's not here he's controlling me."

Hilary walked over to the lifeless shirt on the ground and swung it over her shoulder. She walked into the laundry room, making sure to keep the door open in case she had to run from a spider, and tossed the shirt into the dryer. "It's already clean, just needs to be fluffed a little."

Hilary turned her back as the dryer started and leaned her elbows on top of it. 'It shouldn't take too long; it's only to de-wrinkle the stupid thing.'

She looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes. She was the worst when she was alone. She could easily put up her fake smiles when she was with other people and pretend that everything was alright when it was all wrong. She smiled inwardly as she remembered her brother's words of advice to her when she was small. Hilary pictured herself sitting at the kitchen table colouring a picture for her dear older brother when the pencil crayon she was using broke. Gorou brought her home a brand new pink pencil sharpener the day before and she was more than happy to use it. She twisted the pencil crayon a few times until the sharpness was to her liking and brought the lead back to her picture. _Snap! _It broke again.

"That's okay!" Hilary smiled and sharpened it once more until she was satisfied. _Snap! _"Ugh!" Even as a small child her frustration got the best of her. She threw her pencil crayon against the table and folded her arms across her chest. "Hmph!"

"Hilary," Gorou was back from school and placed his backpack on the back of the chair Hilary was sitting on. "What's wrong?"

"It's not working!" Hilary pouted and furrowed her brows at her brother. He smiled sweetly at her and picked up the pencil crayon, "What isn't working? Why are you so angry?"

She heaved a sigh and unfolded her arm, slamming her hands on the table. "The crayon keeps breaking!"

"That's why I got you the sharpener, Hilary."

"It doesn't work!" Gorou picked up the sharpener and twirled the pencil crayon until it was sharp enough to colour with. "There, try that."

Hilary took the pencil from her brother reluctantly and was expecting the worst. Instead of breaking, it coloured nicer than it did before and lasted longer, too. "Ugh!" Hilary became frustrated once more and crossed her arms, pouting again.

"What is it this time?" Gorou pulled his chair up closer to his little whiney baby of a sister.

"Nothing goes right for me!" Gorou smiled and gently took Hilary's hand into his, unfolding her arms.

"Then go left." Hilary looked up at him with her large ruby eyes full of confusion. Gorou laughed lightly and repeated himself, "When nothing goes right, go left."

-_Beep- _

The sound of the dryer pulled Hilary out of her deep thoughts of the past. She wiped the small tears that were forming in her eyes and opened the dryer door. Pulling his shirt out, she shook it a few times to straighten out the creases- it was nice and fluffy again. Hilary brought the shirt close to her nose to see if it smelled like flowers instead of a sweaty man. She thanked the heavens above that Kai wasn't there to witness her awkward moments. 'Mmm.' His shirt smelled just like him; like lavender. Even though Kai was one of the most handsome, intimidating, fierce and brave men in the world, he always smelled gentle and kind.

Hilary pulled the shirt away, disgusted by her own thoughts. 'I need to keep a distance from him. He's even controlling my thoughts!'

She folded up his shirt and brought it out to the living room, not sure where to leave it. Kai usually slept on the couch so he could 'guard the door' as he said. Sometimes, though, he would sleep in her room in a futon on the floor if she was scared or upset. Whether Hilary wanted to admit it or not, Ray was one hundred percent right about Kai being a gentleman. She knew for a fact that there wasn't a thing in the world that Kai would do to hurt her.

"Where am I supposed to leave his stuff?" She felt bad that Kai always insisted on sleeping on the couch - it wasn't very hostess-like of her. Kai was her guest, and as a guest he should have his own respected space for his own respected business. After folding her last few things of laundry, she brought everything, including Kai's shirt, upstairs. Hilary brought her own basket of clothes to her room to set in her drawers later and brought Kai's into her brother's room. 'Takumi wouldn't care. He thinks Kai is so cool.'

She rolled her eyes at the thought of her brother bowing down to Kai's greatness that he apparently had. Hilary set his shirt down on the bed and looked around her brother's room. She never really went in there all that often, especially since he was a grown boy now. To her surprise, there weren't any pinups anywhere, 'Thank goodness.' She looked around his desk and found a small picture frame that didn't look familiar. Picking it up, Hilary smiled to herself. It was of herself and Takumi playing in a sandbox together. Hilary was smiling and holding a shovel while Takumi had a red pale on his head with a huge smile on his face. 'What a little snot!' she thought to herself, she had no idea that Takumi would do something like this himself. 'Guess he has some sentimental aspects.'

Having no interest in his room, Hilary made her way for the door to go and sort out her piles of clothes. Not that she wanted to or anything, but Kai would go ballistic if she didn't. 'Don't want to listen to his big mouth.'

She walked past the bathroom door and noticed that someone left on the light. 'Hehe, oops!' She bonked herself on the head with her fist, sticking out her tongue not realizing how forgetful she had been. Hilary pushed open the bathroom door slightly, took a step in and reached for the light switch. Before she managed to flip the switch her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.

There stood Kai in all his glory. Earlier she thought it was a rare chance to see his face naked without any paint, but this? Kai paused from drying his hair with the towel and widened his eyes as he looked at Hilary staring at him from the doorway. He couldn't tell if she was looking at his face or... 'Shit!' He moved the towel from his hair to his manhood as fast as he could and flushed bright red.

Hilary, however, remained still. Her heart was racing and all her blood rushed to her face.

This was definitely the worst way to keep a distance.

* * *

><p>FIN!<p>

Here's the promised quit-update chapter!

Ahaha poor Kai. Poor, poor Kai. Seems like he's giving everyone the best side of him- especially Hilary ;)

I hope this somewhat made up for my absence. I'm looking forward to the next chapter already, woohoo!

Love you all :)

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	18. Hiwatari

Hmm, in the last chapter I spelled another thing wrong smh. "Quit" should be "quick" lmaoo OOPS. Thank you all for the reviews- so happy you're liking it thus far! But yeah, I apologize for a few spelling mistake.. I'm usually so anal about grammar but I guess that doesn't include the middle of the night.

Sigh, I stepped on a huge piece of glass a bit ago and now it's infected or something nasty and now I'm bed-ridden -_- LIFE'S GREAT. More time to write!

Disclaimer: I don't own anythiiiiing.

* * *

><p>Chapter 18:<p>

_Ba-bump. _Hilary's heart felt like it was beating in her throat. She knew her face was as red as a stop sign and her eyes were as big as saucers. This whole thing happened within a second but it felt like it took forever.

Kai, on the other hand, was absolutely mortified. He, too, resembled a stop sign and his heart was beating fast as he hid his parts from Hilary. Not only was he freaking out that she was staring at his naked body, he was also concerned with what she'd think of his manhood.

Typical guy.

"AH! KAI I'M SO SORRY!" Hilary spun around and ran out of the bathroom, pulling the door shut behind her. She ran into her room and shut the door, sliding down the other side of it. 'Oh. My. God.'

Kai sighed to himself and tossed the towel over to the counter. 'Of all things.' He stepped into his boxers and pulled them up under his belly button. 'Now what the hell do I do?' Kai leaned against the counter and rested his forehead in his palm. This was the most awkward moment in his life. He didn't know what to do- was he supposed to just talk to her as if nothing happened? No, he couldn't. Knowing Hilary she would probably not talk to him for a good month out of embarrassment. He debated about taking this situation from a comical approach. If he joked about it or pretended it didn't mentally damage Hilary, maybe she wouldn't ignore him.

Kai wasn't a man of many words, nor was he one to care about most things in life. He never got frustrated over small things and didn't put much thought into anything. Kai put both hands in his hair and shuffled them back and forth in it. "Now what?"

He'll just apologize for the whole thing. It wasn't his fault, but he probably traumatized her. Kai turned the door knob and stepped outside the bathroom and into the hallway.

Hilary put her beat red face into her hands, heating them up instantly. 'I can't believe I did that! I'm so stupid!'

She had never felt so embarrassed in her entire life. Her whole plan was to keep a distance from Kai so she could get him out of her head. But THIS? Now she saw his naked body! Hilary's face became hotter with every thought running through her head. Not that she didn't particularly dislike what she saw- Kai had the perfect body. He had nice, thick arms, abs that could grate cheese, water beading down his body, and- 'AH!' Hilary shook her head and pressed her hands harder to her face. 'What am I thinking?'

What a predicament. Hilary knew that Kai would be mad at her for barging in on him like that. Not only was it rude, but it was probably so humiliating for him. She felt awful about the whole thing and had no idea what to do. She lifted her red face from her hands and sighed to herself. How was she going to be able to face him again without making him feel uncomfortable? She got to her feet and turned to her door, "All I have to do is apologize," she encouraged herself, "And, eventually, forget this ever happened."

She turned the knob on her door and stepped outside, only to come face to face with Kai once more. Both their faces instantly turned bright red and turned away from one another. Hilary was biting her lip and holding her hands together down in front of her, whereas Kai had his fist to his mouth trying to hide his blush.

'I didn't think I'd see him this soon!' Hilary nibbled on her lower lip, 'I at least wanted to make it down the stairs! Man, and he's only in his boxers- I can't even look at him!' She groaned, 'This is so embarrassing!'

'Shit,' Kai cursed, 'Now or never, I guess.' "Ahem," Kai closed his eyes and coughed into his fist to clear his throat. He cleared his mind and slowly made his blush fade away. He had to think of a way to make things less tense between himself and Hilary- fast.

Hilary looked at Kai with her tinted cheeks as he coughed. She had no idea what to say to him. She wanted to laugh and make jokes about it but had no idea how to go about this whole thing. Kai wasn't blushing or anything, so maybe he didn't care as much as she did about it. 'Or maybe he's just mad!'

Kai opened his eyes and looked straight into Hilary's. Without giving it much thought, Kai opened his mouth to let whatever words come out to their job. "Uh, see anything you like?"

Hilary's face was practically burgundy and steam would soon shoot from her ears. She clearly didn't take it the way Kai meant it. Kai smacked his forehead when he realized what his brilliant mind came up with. Hilary bowed quickly to hide her blush, keeping her eyes tightly shut so she wasn't tempted to look back up at him. 'Since he said that he probably doesn't think I find him attractive! Kai's more sensitive than I thought he was. He's looking for approval or acceptance of his appearance. Oh my gosh, I offended him!'

"I'm so sorry for interrupting you. Please don't be mad at me. I promise I won't ever do it again-honest."

Kai looked down at Hilary bowing in front of him, raising an eyebrow. 'Why's she apologizing?' Wasn't he the one that should be saying sorry for not locking the door or something? "I-"

"I find you very attractive!" Kai's blush returned to his face. Hilary shot her eyes up at him and held her hand in a fist over her chest. "Don't think I ran off because I don't find you appealing, Kai! I liked everything about what-" Her face was now just a shade from purple, "Well, you know... But I do think you're good looking, Kai! Don't think any less of yourself or anything, okay?"

Kai was speechless.

Hilary continued to stare up at Kai, not knowing what to do next. 'I hope he didn't take any of it the wrong way.' She wanted to know what he was thinking, but had to be patient. This was Kai, after all.

Kai didn't know what to make of this. He was happy and confused at the same time. Why was Hilary confessing how attractive she apparently thought he was? 'It took her peeping in on me to tell me how she felt? What the hell?'

The one time in life that Hilary confessed something like this to Kai he was half naked. Not exactly the ideal scene he was hoping for. Kai smirked, "Happy you feel that way. Now," he pushed Hilary aside so he could walk by, "If you'll excuse me, I'd like to put some clothes on."

Hilary watched Kai's retreating back. 'He's so mad,' she concluded to herself. Maybe she said that the wrong way? Or maybe she didn't understand why he acted the way he did because he was hiding his hurt to save her feelings. Not only did she barge in on his bath time, she also insulted him and then stopped him from getting dressed. 'What kind of a hostess am I?'

Nothing was making sense to Kai. Hilary was acting like a complete lunatic over the smallest- er, biggest thing. Kai had too much pride to label anything of his _small, _especially his ego. Kai walked into Hilary's brother's room and opened up the bottom drawer, taking out his clothes. Takumi had, at one point, given Kai "permission" to use his room as his own and keep his clothes where ever he felt fit. Kai like the boy- he wasn't as soft and pitiful like most boys his age. Kai pulled a black shirt over his head, carefully not letting his wet hair touch the material. One thing he hated the most was a wet shirt soaking his back.

He pulled out some sweats he had stored up on top of the dresser and threw them on. 'No special occasion today.'

There was a knock on Takumi's door and a small voice called Kai's name. "You're allowed in, you know."

"Remember what happened last time I did?" Hilary muttered as she slowly pushed herself through the door with a light blush on her cheeks. Kai was over it at this point- no matter what he said or did wouldn't change the fact that he exposed his entire self to Hilary. Her, on the other hand, was still affected by it. Kai smiled at her comment and sat on the end of Takumi's bed, waiting for her to continue.

"Well," the blushed faded from her cheeks and her expression changed to a more serious one, "I'm going to go out for a bit. I just wanted to let you know."

Kai leaned over his knees and rested his chin on his hand. "Do you need a ride?" Hilary smiled sweetly at him. That's one thing she loved about him- he wasn't nosey and didn't question the things she told him. He was kind in every way.

"No, it's alright, I can take the bus."

"Why would you take the bus when I'm here to drive you?" Kai's persistence, however, no matter how similar it was to hers, was one thing that annoyed her.

"It's fine, Kai. Thank you, but I have a bus token and I might as well use it."

Kai's stomach twisted at the thought of Hilary being on a city bus surrounded by strange people she didn't know. He didn't trust anyone but himself with Hilary, so this was an automatic issue.

"The bus isn't safe. Let me drive you so nothing happens to you."

Hilary sighed, "Kai, I'm a big girl. Nothing will happen to me. If it does I can take care of myself." She knew he was protective, but he was a little smothering sometimes.

Without a word Kai got to his feet and grabbed his sweater that was hanging on the closet door knob. "Let's go, I'll wait for you downstairs." And he made his way downstairs.

"W-wait, what? No!" Hilary chased him down the stairs and into the living room where he was turning off the lights. "Kai, I can go on my own."

She continued being ignored by Kai. He stepped into his shoes and grabbed his car keys from the small table at the front door.

"Kai!" Hilary tried to push Kai against the door but, unfortunately, that was like trying to move a cement wall. He smirked down at the small girl glaring up at him. She pounded his chest with her fist, "Move, you're not bringing me."

"No." Hilary growled and held her fist in the air slightly shaking it. "Move!"

"Refusal."

"Move out of my way."

"Are you following me out the door?"

"Umm, no I-"

"Then no." Hilary hit Kai in the chest repeatedly with her fists like a two year old having a temper tantrum. Why did he have to be so difficult?

"Why? You're not my mother, move out of my way!" With one hand Kai held her hands together to stop her beatings. "K-Kai!" He bent down with his other arm to pick her up and tossed her over his shoulder. Hilary kicked her legs in attempt to break free. He brought her to the couch and flopped her onto her back, grabbing her hands again to prevent her from escaping.

Hilary stared up at Kai wide-eyed, his nose just grazing hers. She was taken by surprise and didn't know how to react to his sudden movements. She was pinned under Kai's strong body and couldn't move. He leaned down and nibbled just above her earlobe, sending shivers through her body. She could hear him chuckle as he brought his face back to hers.

"See how easy it would be for someone to take advantage of you?" He straightened up his back, his knees on either side of her legs. Hilary was frozen in place, staring into Kai's eyes and taking in what he was saying. Okay, so he had a point. But that doesn't mean someone would do that on a bus... would they?

"I don't want anything to happen to you, understand?" Hilary nodded her head, trying to sit up under Kai's weight. A small blush rose to her cheeks and she frowned at him. She stuck out her bottom lip, emphasizing her pout,

"Don't do that again."

Kai smiled and kissed her forehead, bringing his eyes to her level. "Meet you in the car." Hilary nodded in agreeance. Satisfied, he climbed off of her and walked towards the door.

Hilary sat up on the couch, her heart pounding against her ribcage. She didn't know why he had to do all that and not just explain it in words. What kind of man was he to try something like that? 'He's right though,' she sighed. She jumped to her feet and grabbed all her things before following out after him.

* * *

><p>"Where am I bringing you?" Kai completely forgot he never asked her what her plans were when they were in the house. He was now driving down the main street in Bakuten and had no idea where they were headed.<p>

Hilary didn't want to let Kai know that she wanted to visit her parents in the hospital. It was humiliating and pathetic enough that she had to explain not being able to help her family. Kai being there would only add more pressure. She told him which intersection to drop her off at and she would just walk the rest of the way. They argued about the "dangers of the streets" for a good while before Kai finally caved in. He pulled into a plaza and found a spot where he would be facing the intersection.

"If I feel uneasy about anything I'm coming after you." Hilary rolled her eyes and shut the door, peering in at him through the window. Kai rolled it down to listen to her upcoming sarcasm.

"Okay mommy. I promise I'll be back in a bit." She waved and skipped off to the traffic lights.

They negotiated that he could sit in the plaza and wait for her to come back. Kai was against this entirely and wanted to go with her and make sure everything was alright. The air felt uneasy when they were in the car together, 'Maybe something's bugging her... Could be from earlier, though.'

He watched Hilary rock back and forth on her feet as she waited for the light to turn green so she could cross. She held her hands together behind her back and smiled at everyone walking past her, including animals. He watched her walk with a hop in her step across and down the street opposite of him, disappearing into the distance.

'God, I feel like a stalker.' Kai sat alone in the plaza's parking lot staring out into the space Hilary walked towards. He looked around him- nobody. He seemed to be the only one there which made him appear even more suspicious. Not to mention his windows were all tinted black. Sighing, he leaned his chair back and closed his eyes. He thought about every day that he's spent with Hilary so far, how many smiles he's seen, the times he's seen her cry, and the times he wouldn't change for anything. He cherished every little thing about Hilary; every strand of hair and every small freckle on her nose. Before he knew it she became his entire being. He's thought about it over and over but still can't wrap his head around how she managed to do it. There was something about her that made his whole world blurry and he could only see them together.

Kai slowly opened his eyes and stared up at the roof of his car. He was so madly in love with Hilary, but he didn't know how to tell her. How could he tell her something that would probably scare her off? He sighed to himself and turned on the radio.

_And now, here is a recording sent to us from an anonymous source of the two best performers from last week's contest. Here's Hilary and Kai Hiwatari singing Dedicate._

"Wow."

If Kai were one to act on emotion he would have sprung up from his chair with his mouth hanging open. Instead, he remained silent in his spot and closed his eyes once more, listening to their voices intertwine with one another. 'The host made it seem like we shared the same surname.' He repeated her name and his together over and over, realizing it had the best ring to it.

'Hilary Hiwatari, huh?'

* * *

><p>Hilary sat across from her parents choking back her tears. She tried so hard to win the money for her dad's treatment, but she just didn't make it.<p>

"I-I'm so sorry," her mother was holding her, wanting to tell her that everything was okay and Kai already covered for the procedure. She made a promise with both her husband and Kai that not a word was to be said about the agreement for Hilary's sake, but this was so hard on her.

"Sweetie it's alright, daddy will be fine. You did your best and we're so proud of you."

* * *

><p>Kai eventually fell asleep after what felt like hours had gone by. It was really only ten minutes, but Kai had a short attention span and staring out the window wasn't all that intriguing. He awoke to the sound of someone tapping on his window. Kai sat up, groggily straining his eyes to see who it was.<p>

"Let me in!" Hilary's muffled voice was heard on the other side and snowflakes were beginning to fall around her. "It's freezing!"

Kai unlocked the doors so her frozen little body could hop in beside him. She was shaking slightly, slowly thawing out in the car. "C-can you put the h-heat on?"

Kai reached over and turned it up all the way so she would warm up faster. He felt so out of it. 'How long was I sleeping?' "How long were you gone for?"

Hilary's ruby eyes glanced over to him and they smiled along with her, "About an hour."

"What did you have to go do?" Kai rubbed his eyes with his left palm and his right was shuffling through his hair. He let out a loud yawn, causing Hilary to giggle. She set a plastic bag on her lap, carefully putting her hand over where Kai could possibly make out what was in it.

"It's a surprise!" She winked playfully at him and reached up for the seatbelt. There was no way Kai was going to figure out she knew about his birthday. It was soon approaching and Hilary finally got the tissue paper and bag she needed for his plane tickets. She bought him a little something else, too, but it probably wasn't his kind of thing.

* * *

><p>Hilary hugged her father and apologized to him from the bottom of her heart. She felt so hopeless, so useless. Her dad was lying in a hospital bed and all she could do was cry for him- how pitiful was that? She promised she would find a way to get the money needed to heal him. She couldn't even make up at least a quarter of what was needed. It was all just too much.<p>

"Relax, Hilary," her teary eyes met her father's. His eyes didn't seem worried in the least. If anything, she'd say he looked almost happy. "I'll be fine."

* * *

><p>"How was your sleep?" Kai smiled embarrassingly while readjusting his seat. "Fine until you showed up."<p>

Hilary rolled her eyes, "You're hysterical." Kai kept up his smile, not realizing how big it apparently was.

"You know," Hilary started, "I never really knew how beautiful your smile was until you barged in and took ownership of my house."

At that, Kai tightened his lips to hide his teeth from her. "Why are you doing that? Your teeth are so white and straight and-"

* * *

><p>Hilary hugged her mother and father goodbye. It was a while since she last saw them and, she hated to admit it, but she missed having them around the house. Takumi spent the last few nights there with their parents to keep an eye on them. He stood up and held out his arms, waiting for his sister to hug him, too. He's always been so close to his sister even though he would never let anyone know he actually liked her. He admired his sister for everything was and everything that she will amount to be.<p>

"I miss you." His sad voice rang through her ears and brought up more tears in her eyes.

"I'll come back again soon, I promise."

* * *

><p>"The seat's a little hot," Hilary complained as Kai pulled out of the plaza, "Maybe the heat's on too high."<p>

"I have ass heaters." She raised her eyebrow at him. "You have what?" Kai glanced at Hilary's confused face and smirked, "There's heaters in the seats."

"Whoa, really?" She was absolutely amazed. Her eyes lit up as she examined all the gadgets and doohickeys in Kai's car. She pressed random buttons to see what they did and each one fascinated her. "I never knew they made things like this in a car!"

"It's not rocket science, Hilary."

* * *

><p>Hilary wiped the tears from her eyes before she came into Kai's view from the car. She couldn't let him see her like this because: A, he would know where she went, or B, he would get worked up and question her nonstop. As she approached the car she noticed that Kai's head of blue hair wasn't poking out into view. She pressed her face against his window and saw him peacefully sleeping in his seat like a baby. Hilary giggled to herself, knowing this was the perfect opportunity to make her getaway.<p>

She ran over to one of the stores in the plaza that was dedicated to birthdays and parties. 'Perfect.' The door chimed when she stepped in and was invaded with employees telling her to try new items that recently entered the store. She pushed free of them after trying to ask where all the birthday gift supplies was and made her way down each aisle. Before reaching her destination of gift bags and tissues, a familiar blue caught her attention.

Hilary stopped abruptly and hid behind one of the shelves, peering around to see if the beast had awoken from it's slumber. 'Phewf.' Hilary inched closer and realized it was a blue teddy bear. Out of all the other bears sitting on the shelves, this was the softest, cutest, most beautiful one. Its whole body resembled Kai's lighter section of hair, and it's eyes were pools of crystal. 'Wow, it's almost real.'

* * *

><p>"Want something to eat?" Kai pulled into a drive-thru, clearly craving something fatty.<p>

"Umm," Hilary scanned through the different meals available on the large menu beside the speaker (AN: I don't know what it's called... you place your order there and the crabby people tell you to go to the next window.). "Can I have the chicken nuggets?"

'She's such a child,' Kai smiled at her answer, slightly chuckling. He placed his order to the woman on the other end of the speaker and drove up to the next window.

Typical young girl.

The woman turned out to be a petite pre-teen with braces and an obvious obsession with Kai. His voice seemed to have put the girl in a trance that rendered her useless when it came to speaking and functioning in general. "T-Th-thank you! H-have a n-nice day!"

"Hn." Kai had no time to humour a drooling girl- not while his stomach was rumbling. He sped up to the next window to grab their food, ignoring the next set of crazy fans and drove back to Hilary's house. Hilary held onto the bar above the window so she wasn't being tossed side to side by Kai's sharp turns. She let out a loud giggle, provoking Kai to intentionally swivel the tires through an empty street. As silly as it may have seemed, she was really enjoying herself.

Kai was the one and only person in the world that could make her feel like she was on top of the world. He held a special place in her heart and he filled a void in her life that she never thought would repair.

He pulled the car up into her driveway and smiled at Hilary's grinning face. Who would have thought fast food and driving like an idiot would bring up such a beautiful expression?

Kai's happiness was wiped away at the sight of his teammates sitting at her front steps. They were all grinning from ear to ear; excited to see the bags of food come out of the car.

"What did you guys get for me?" Tyson ran over to the duo and was drooling over the bags.

"Nothing. Leave." They just had to ruin his good time. "We just stopped by to see how Hilary was doing," Ray smirked, fully aware of the moment they were interrupting. "No need to attack us."

Kai rolled his eyes. Hilary, however, was more than happy to see her friends. She hugged each of them and invited them inside, offering to split her food amongst them.

Sourpuss watched their retreating backs and narrowed his eyes. This always seemed to happen to him.

"Sorry for cock blocking," Minori walked up from the sidewalk where he was looking over the chalk drawings on the sidewalk from earlier on in the season. "They begged to come here." He, too, walked into the house after the group overly excited over chicken nuggets and whatever else Hilary was going to make.

'I hate this team.'

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

Before I end with some nonsense, for those who don't know what the term "cock blocking" means... I suggest you look it up on Urban Dictionary. I feel guilty for throwing that in there but hell, it was by all means necessary.

This will, unfortunately, be yet another story that I don't read over before I post it. Why? Because I'm tired and am way too anxious to NOT post it tonight. So, as I've said in other chapters, feel free to correct me and let me know how stupid I am for not reading over my work. Maybe I will for the next one; WHO KNOWS.

Ah, words can't express the love I have for this couple. Kai and Hilary are a match made in anime heaven- they're just meant to be. There's no ifs, ands, or buts involved when it comes to pairing up characters. It's purely KaixHilary. No other exceptions.

Alright, enough of me! I hope you enjoyed this :) worked my butt off for all y'all. Not too sure when the next one will be uploaded, but I'm hoping it'll be within this week or the next because exams start again. Yay.

Cheers,

-radixVIRO (aka the crippled leg)


	19. Dimples

Hello world! Thank you for the reviews, guys. Your support is very much appreciated and I love reading through every single one :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade. Also, I am not advertising nor promoting anything I may mention in this chapter.

* * *

><p>Commencing Chapter 19:<p>

"Never again."

"Relax," Hilary giggled, "It wasn't that bad."

Every inch of Kai's body felt like it was twitching for the two consecutive days his team decided to sleep over at Hilary's house. It was bad enough that they ate all their food, but did they really have to camp out in the living room? The place was an absolute disgrace; pillows were scattered on the floor, blankets tossed along the walls, and what seemed like a thousand empty snack bags tossed in every corner of the room. Three garbage bags were already leaning against the back wall full of his teammates' crap and garbage they left for Hilary to clean up.

"Fucking pigs."

Hilary giggled once more at Kai's scowling face as he helped her collect all the blankets. Although brute, he was kind of cute when he was in a huff. She gathered all their pillows and brought them to the couch to neatly stack them. "You could have gone with them to train, you know."

"Feh," Kai snorted and lazily threw the blankets on the other couch. "I've had enough of them." No, Kai. The real reason he stayed behind was so that he could actually get in some Kai-Hilary time. He preferred being the only male species in the house with Hilary and knowing he had her undivided attention. He hated to admit defeat to the little green monster stabbing at him, but there was no other factor to resort to.

"I thought it was fun. It was actually my first 'slumber party'."Kai quirked his eyebrow and looked back at Hilary piling wrappers into her small arms. He couldn't believe the lack of responsibility his team held. Well, minus Minori since he offered to give Hilary a hand but was rejected with her smile and insisted to "go have fun." As far as Kai was concerned, being with those idiots was nothing near the definition of fun. They were immature, reckless, unsophisticated baboons. Kai's eyebrow twitched for the millionth time that morning as he remembered the ridiculous argument Tyson started with him the night before.

Hilary stood at the doorway entrance staring at Kai's raging figure questioningly. She found no reason to ask why he was so bothered and carried out the garbage bags to the side of the house. Stepping back inside she noticed Kai seemed to be unusually caught up in his thoughts. She found it best not to disturb his meditating state. She grabbed her handbag and keys, shutting the door behind her as she waved back to the Hulk in the living room. Hilary had a few errands to run- pick up some groceries, check the mail, small jobs- and wouldn't be very long anyway. 'He shouldn't be too worried.' There was nothing left for him to clean up, so when she came back he had nothing to really yell about.

Kai sat on the arm of the couch with his arms folded in deep concentration with his lip now twitching. 'Whose brilliant idea was it to stay the night? Oh, right, stupid Tyson. Always thinking of idiotic shit that pisses me off to no end.' His rage built up once more as he remembered the idiot and blonde haired twit going off to buy some alcohol. 'They think they're so slick- looking for ways to camp out here. I hate them. Ruining the floor and throwing up out the window. Teammates? Pfft, anything with a lack of dignity at their level isn't worth a thing.'

* * *

><p>"Hey Hirl," Tyson slurred after finishing off his third bottle. It had definitely been a case of mission impossible trying to get it past Kai. "C-Can I stay the night?"<p>

Both Kai and Hilary replied in unison, but to Kai's disappointment, they were opposite.

"No."

"Yes, of course!" Kai couldn't believe his ears. Was Hilary actually approving of this irresponsible behaviour? Never had he been a part of such a feeble minded activity. If you don't include the times he drank at social events, Kai wasn't really much of a drinker.

"I'd usually say no," Hilary began again, helping Tyson sit up on the couch, "But I can't have you guys giving yourselves a bad name. What if someone caught you roaming down the streets tripping over each other? It's an embarrassment."

Kai smirked and folded his arms, sitting cross-legged on the couch opposite of Tyson. He was glad Hilary's brain was somewhat functioning properly that night. Kai felt a nudge at his side that was followed by a hiccupping slur. "Why-y don't you h-have some? It's not like Satan~ made it."

"Shut up." Ray was the last person he thought would stoop to Tyson's level. "I k-know you ta-ake it hard."

Kai scrunched his face in disgust, "What the f-" Ray shoved a bottle in the two-toned blader's face, "Hard li-iquor, stupid."

Kai rolled his eyes, still disgusted by the condition of his best friend. "I'm not interested in your foolishness."

"Come on, Hirlurly! Take a sip!" Kai's ears perked up as he listened in on the conversation between Max, Hilary and Tyson. "Yeah, it isn't all that bad." Yeah, alright. Says the blonde fool that's stumbling all over the room. Max fell flat on his face and began laughing to himself. This was a disaster.

Hilary smiled and waved her hands in refusal at the bottles being offered. "No, it's alright. Drinking isn't really my thing."

"They're right Hilary," both hers and Kai's attention was now focused on Minori who appeared well composed and in control of himself. He was seated beside Hilary with a cup in his hands filled with some pink liquid, "If you control your intake you won't end up like them." Kai couldn't believe what he was witnessing. He thought Minori was on his side. The Robin to his Batman was now offering Hilary alcohol? Unacceptable.

Hilary's eyes focused in on the drink in Minoris' hand. She remembered being told by her parents never to accept anything that someone else was offering her- especially alcohol because you never know what they might have done to it. They could have slipped in some roofies and were waiting to smuggle her away to some alley and do bad things to her!

'Don't be stupid.' This _was _Minori and he was as equally as protective and mature as her older brother was so she could trust him. Her stare at the drink intensified as she contemplated on whether or not to accept his offer. "Alright."

Kai died a little inside while he watched Hilary accept the drink from Minori's hand and take a small sip. He cringed and watched her pause for a moment and proceeded to tip the whole cup and down every last drop. Hilary licked her lips and placed the cup down on the table. Kai was preparing himself for cardiac arrest. "It's pretty good!"

"YEAH! That's my girl!" Minori high-fived Hilary a little too sloppy and then fell forward onto the floor with Max. He was plastered. Tyson slithered his way over to them and the three stooges laughed hysterically at nothing in particular. "One of us! One of us!" They chanted and pumped their fists in the air to salute Hilary as part of the drunkards.

Kai died a little more inside.

Hilary's smile made contact with Kai's seemingly emotionless face, "You should try some, Kai. It tastes like a smoothie!" Although he held his usual exterior, he felt his insides slowly sinking to the pit of his torso after watching Hilary willingly gulp down alcohol. _She _was the last person he expected to stoop to the idiots' level.

"No thanks." Kai shot Hilary a disappointed look in attempt to keep her sober and make her realize that this was wrong, but was ignored. She jumped to her feet and walked to the kitchen, pouring some more of the drink Minori had into two cups. She handed one to Minori in thanks for his share and she kept the other as her own. She made her way over to where Kai and Ray were sitting on the couch, carefully stepping around the boys sprawled out on the floor laughing and shouting. She sat between the boys and offered her drink to Kai once more.

"It really isn't that strong, Kai." Kai huffed and turned his head away. "I thought you had more self-respect than that."

Hilary nudged him with her arm and pushed the cup closer to his face. "I have plenty of respect for both myself and other people. We're all of legal age, there's no problem with this."

"Yes there is." Kai took the cup from Hilary and chugged it down in hopes it would satisfy her nagging. It did the opposite. She grinned from ear to ear and ran back into the kitchen to bring out the whole bottle. 'You've got to be kidding me.'

"That's the spit, H-Hil!" Ray hiccupped next to Kai's ear, almost earning himself a fist to the face. Kai shook his head in shame at his friend's inability to pronounce "spirit". Ray shouldn't be encouraging this behaviour. He was a year older than Hilary, like Kai, and was expected to be more responsible. "Shot for shot!"

Ray climbed over Kai and pushed him aside so he could sit directly in front of Hilary. "Shot for shot? What's that?" Ray explained to her what it was and she smiled in agreeance. 'Smiled in agreeance?' Kai's mind was about to explode from the disbelief he was facing. His team was turning Hilary into an alcoholic- or so, that's what Kai thought.

Ray took a gulp from the bottle first then passed it back to Hilary, motioning for her to do the same. They passed it back and forth, each gulp becoming larger than the previous one. Kai gave up. He wasn't her father so he couldn't tell her what to do. She was a grown woman now and if she wanted to have fun with her friends, then she could. Under Kai's supervision, of course. He sighed and walked over to the three on the floor.

"Where's Daichi and Kenny?" Tyson was upside down against the wall and looked over at Kai with a giggle. "I beyblade with my bum-bum." Minori and Max burst out into both tears and laughter. Kai's eyebrow twitched for the first time that night at Tyson's stupidity. He didn't find them the least bit funny. "Where are they?"

He now had Minori's attention who replied between laughs, "We pawned off Daichi with some kids from his school and," he pointed to the kitchen, "Kenny's out behind the fridge."

"He had a sip and was OUT!" The group of them became louder than before and chugged back their drinks.

Now Kai's concern was a little more severe than before. He sped into the kitchen, going straight to the fridge and finding poor Kenny flopping against it drooling in his sleep. From the looks of it, he leaned against the side of the fridge and slid down to the state he was in now. Kai slapped his forehead, 'Even Kenny got caught up in this.'

He bent down and tried to make this as un-awkward as possible. He carefully scooped Kenny up from the floor and carried his dangling body upstairs into Takumi's room. If anything, he would be most safe in there and likely wouldn't wake up until the morning. Kai flopped him on the bed and stepped out, shutting the door behind him. He himself knew this was out of the ordinary for him to do, but he was considered the designated driver in this situation and took responsibility of his team. Also, he wouldn't let his friend be in harm's way- aka Tyson, Max, and Minori.

Kai stepped into Hilary's room and looked at the small clock beside her bed. It was already one o'clock in the morning and they were still guzzling down the liquor. Kai sighed to himself and made his way back downstairs. He hated the immaturity and nonsense that consumed his team. Stepping on the last stair he turned his head and looked into the living room. One of the three drunken idiots was missing and Hilary and Ray sat on the couch laughing and pointing at each other's faces. What Kai zoned in on was the empty bottle at the bottom of Hilary's foot. 'You've got to be kidding me.' He seemed to be thinking that a lot tonight.

He found a spot against the wall and sat down with his legs crossed. He folded his arms and glared in disgust as his team and their behaviour. They were supposed to be professionals and this was absolutely revolting. Kai's violet orbs scanned over Hilary and her current state. Her cheeks were tainted pink and her eyes practically shouted "I'm drunk! Come take advantage of me!" He scowled as he imagined what other guys might have done if she were out with other friends. He couldn't stand the thought of another man near Hilary. His eyes then moved to Ray who was laughing along with Hilary and sitting with his legs crossed on the couch. They were really caught up in their conversation, flailing their arms around to emphasize whatever they were saying.

Kai sighed to himself, again. He was surrounded by imbeciles. Speaking of which... Kai shot his eyes over to Tyson that was hiding and preparing to scare his captain. "Don't bother."

"But Klaiii~!" Tyson dropped on his back in front of Kai and sounded as if he was speaking in tongue. He was mumbling some nonsense to himself which seemed to make him sit up straight and stare at Kai. Max and Minori fidgeted and watched the staring contest between the two bluenettes. Tyson leaned closer to Kai and squinted his eyes, as if challenging him. Kai, on the other hand, remained still and gave his usual glare to Tyson. Until Tyson spoke...

"You look like regurgitated monkey butt." Kai raised an eyebrow and intensified his glare. What the hell did Tyson just call him? Max and Minori, of course, found this hilarious and were rolling on the ground having a giggle fit.

"Get away from me." Kai was in no mood to talk to Tyson, especially after he convinced Hilary to get in on the drinking.

"You mad bro?" Tyson tilted his head to the side and seemed to be completely serious with every response he shot at Kai, which only aggravated the two-toned captain.

"Back off." This only made the drunk fool scoot himself closer to Kai. This was way over exceeding his limits.

"Drink with us." Tyson's voice was dripping with slurs and hiccups that only led to Kai thinking he was even more stupid and incompetent than he put on.

Kai didn't say a word and simply glared at Tyson. Tyson was grinning from ear to ear and leaned in closer to whisper, "You like Hilary."

This was completely unexpected and took Kai by surprise. Tyson's grin grew larger, "Ask her out."

Kai looked over at Hilary and Ray still chatting and completely oblivious to what else was going on in the room. He turned his attention back to Tyson and sternly stared at the twit, "Shut up."

"You shouldn't be mad at me because you're too scared to be a man." One stab in the ego is equal to one bruise on Tyson's body. Kai's eyes slightly widened and narrowed with immense anger.

"What did you say?" The peanut gallery behind them were "ooh'ing" and making barking noises to encourage a fight.

Tyson hiccupped and leaned back onto his hands with a smile, "That awkward moment when I'm right and Kai's a pussy!" He began laughing with the gallery and just before he was able to roll off to share more drinks Kai threatened in a mocking tone,

"That awkward moment when I want to introduce your face to the curb."

Even if Tyson was somewhat right about Kai not asking Hilary out, it had nothing to do with him not being a man or being scared. Kai Hiwatari was not scared of anything. He was worried about how him asking her on a date would change their relationship with one another but that was it. End of story. Kai stormed off to the staircase and marched his way up each step. Although he wanted to plow Tyson's face in, there was nothing he could really do since his teammate was drunk and clearly not in the right state of mind. Tyson may be a hollow shell with - give or take - five brain cells maximum, but he wasn't stupid enough to confront or disrespect Kai in any way.

He walked into Hilary's room and pulled the door shut behind him. Kai brought down the pillow and sheets he used when he slept in there every so often when she was scared or upset. He set out his make shift bed on the floor and sat down on the blanket in a huff. He wasn't their babysitter and he wasn't going to subject himself to the stupidity unfolding downstairs. This was supposed to be his night spending time with Hilary and trying to find out where she ran off to when he was left in the plaza parking lot. He wanted to get to know her a little better and allow her to know more about himself. But no.

Kai sighed to himself one last time before undressing for bed. He usually brushed his teeth and sometimes his hair before he fell asleep, but tonight was an exception. He took off his shirt and pants, leaving on only his boxers that he usually wore and tossed his pants to the side. He used his shirt to wipe off the blue paint from his face, leaving it partially smudged without a care and tossed his shirt over to join his pants. Kai ran his fingers through his hair and looked at the clock once more, reading that it was now almost three in the morning and groaned. He slid himself under the sheets and pulled them up to his shoulders, imagining the annoyance he'll receive from everyone and their hangovers when they wake up.

* * *

><p>Kai groaned and raised an arm over his face- the sun was unusually bright this morning. He was already on his side and pulled the covers up closer to his face. The sun's rays beamed in once more in a flash and disappeared again. 'Flash?'<p>

He groggily opened up one eye and tried to focus his blurry vision. He concentrated on the large blur in front of him, slowly allowing his eyes to adjust to the bright room. When the sleep in his eyes vanished he saw his team standing in the room with a camera flashing at him.

"What the hell are you doing?" He growled at his teammates and Minori for waking him up so damn early in the morning and taking pictures like a bunch of lowlife paparazzi.

"We could ask you the same thing, Kai." Ray's irritating voice rang through his ears. Why was he talking to him with such a dramatically smug tone to his words? Kai went to sit up and yell at his team to kick them out because they'll wake up Hilary but felt a small weight holding him down. Before acknowledging what it was, he looked to Hilary's bed and found it empty. His eyes shifted to the weight on his chest and found Hilary sound asleep snuggled up and draping her limbs over his body. She had her left arm and leg wrapped around him like a koala bear and had her head resting on his chest. Kai looked back to his team's smug faces. Now he understood what they were doing.

"Why's she wearing your shirt, Kai?" Tyson, of course, asked with his eyebrows rising up and down ever so profoundly. Kai looked back at the girl on top of him and noticed that she was, indeed, wearing his shirt. He could only feel the skin of her legs and took that as a hint not to bother investigating what she was wearing for bottoms.

"Now I know why Hilary left so early to come upstairs." Ray winked at Kai with a smirk-which grew when he saw the pink beginning to show on Kai's face.

"N-" He was at a loss for words. Kai had no idea how this happened or what was going on. He knew nothing happened between them last night because he was sober and would have remembered... right? "No, it's not what you think. I- Get the fuck out!" He growled and glared at his smiling teammates. Of all times for him to not appear intimidating.

Ray finalized the blush on Kai's face upon exiting the room. "Your paint is a little smudged. Go easy on her next time."

Kai was left alone with Hilary in her room. He had no idea what to do or think at this point. He remembered every single bit of detail from the night before up until he fell asleep and now there was a sleeping Hilary draped across his chest and holding onto his body. He looked down at himself and Hilary again, registering why they would think this was even more suspicious. Kai had no shirt and no pants on, just his boxers, and his face was slightly smudged with blue paint. Hilary was wrapped around his body with what appeared to be just his shirt with blue smudges and nothing else on. Also, another contributing factor would be that Hilary's clothes were tossed aside like Kai's were. The urge to investigate rose in his body. He needed to know if she had anything else so it would ease his mind of suspecting anything happened with them. His cheeks were burning hot as he leaned up a bit and pulled the blankets down a little lower, exposing Hilary's bare legs. Kai gulped.

He hesitantly pinched the end of his shirt she was wearing and lifted it slightly up the side of her leg. 'God, I feel like such a pervert.' It was all innocent- there were absolutely no ill intentions behind what he was doing. He lifted it slightly higher and sighed in relief. Hilary was, thank the Lord above, wearing her pink panties and didn't seem ruffled or hassled in the least. He pulled the shirt back around her and lifted the covers up to her neck, lying back down so she wasn't awkwardly bending her neck in his sitting position.

It would have been the end of his life if he had done anything with Hilary last night and didn't remember. Especially because she was drunk. Kai was _not _the type of man to sleep with a girl while she was intoxicated. Hell, he wasn't the type to sleep with any girl he didn't have legitimate feelings for. Unlike most he had morals and held respect for a woman- namely Hilary. He sighed and tilted his head back to try and get a view of the clock behind them. Slightly squinting his eyes he barely made out that it was already two in the afternoon.

He brought his right elbow and forearm back to his face and covered it. This was too much for him to take in during the first ten minutes of being awake. He felt Hilary move slightly on his chest, shuffling and making herself more comfortable against his body. Kai looked down at her below his arm and smiled slightly. It seemed a little weird, but it felt right how they were right now. Kai would never have imagined being comfortable and unaffected by having his arm around Hilary while she cuddled up to him. It's not like they haven't before or anything, it's just this time it felt like it held more value than anything else in the world. He brought down his arm and wrapped it around her small body and fell back asleep.

* * *

><p>"I'm back!" Hilary's voice brought Kai out of his thoughts abruptly, "Sorry I was gone for so long. The line at the store was insane and everyone's shopping carts were full right up to the top." He watched her shuffle to the kitchen and place her shopping bags on the table.<p>

Her body disappeared behind the wall, but she was so loud it was as if she were standing beside him. She yelled out, "Kai, are you hungry? I brought back some crackers and cheese if you want a snack."

Kai rubbed his eyes with a smile, remembering how happy and relieved he was after talking to Hilary and confirming exactly what happened that night. She ended up spilling a drink all over herself and was so frustrated she decided to go to bed. She didn't want to bother making another shirt dirty since she would just have more laundry to do so she grabbed whatever she could find. She stumbled around the room in the dark and made out a shirt lying on the floor, which was Kai's, and was satisfied that it was something. After putting it on, all the blood felt like it rushed to her head and she fell over on the floor. She felt way too dizzy to move and knew that Kai was there where she landed. She knew she was safe where she was and eventually dozed off.

"Kai?" He glanced up to find Hilary's head poking around the corner with curious ruby eyes. He smirked and rose to his feet, joining her in the kitchen. "Yeah, that's fine." Hilary rambled on about her day to Kai, unaware that he was spacing out.

He thought back to the second night his team stayed over. He was grateful that it was nothing like the previous night; a little more calm and quiet. Minori and Hilary went out and rented a movie for the group to watch. It took a good two hours for them to return due to their arguing in the store about which would be the best pick. Hilary unwillingly agreed to some scary flick about demon possession and the living dead.

Kai smiled inwardly recalling how Hilary clung herself to his arm and buried her face into his shoulder through basically the entire thing. He and Minori seemed to be the only males with balls in the room. Tyson, Max and Kenny were all huddled together freaking out and screaming every so often. Ray and Daichi were on the couch hiding behind one another occasionally next to Kai and Hilary. Minori was on the opposite side of Hilary, making her stuck between the only brave boys. They were so alike it was terrifying. If something dreadful happened in the movie they would both chuckle, smile, or make a comment about how it should have been worse than it was.

That night, rather than passing out where ever they landed like the night before, Hilary found pillows and blankets for all her friends. Tyson made a fort with Daichi and Max while Ray, Kenny and Minori laid theirs out like actual beds. Kai and Hilary slept on the couches in the living room with their team to prevent any more suspicions about themselves. It was bad enough the team saw them that morning snuggling up to one another with barely any clothes on.

"Hello?" Hilary's waving hand in his face snapped Kai out of his daydream. "What's with you today? I never took you as a space cadet." Very funny Hilary.

"Space cadet?" Kai raised an eyebrow along with his question and looked down at the snacks she placed in front of him. She had cut up a bunch of fruits and set them on a platter with crackers, cheese, and dip.

"Yeah because you're spacing out. You know, out of this world kind of deal." She popped a cracker into her mouth and chewed silently. "You haven't been telling me a few things about yourself each day like you promised."

Kai threw a strawberry into his mouth and looked at her sideways. He completely forgot about doing that. It wasn't entirely his fault though, I mean, she forgot too. Kai swallowed his fruit, "What do you want to know?"

Hilary picked up a square of cheese, "I dunno, anything you want to share." Kai thought hard about it. What was something Hilary didn't know about him that would be interesting? He came across as a man of mystery to the entire world but, in reality, he wasn't all that amusing.

"I have dimples?" Hilary's mouth would have opened slightly with surprise if it wasn't stuffed with food already. She swallowed it quickly, "You're lying!"

"Nope." Kai casually tossed another fruit into his mouth. Hilary was in absolute awe. This wasn't something she expected him to reply with. Then again, she wouldn't know since Kai had never been the type to grin and show off his hidden features. But dimples?

"Let me see." She leaned in closer with pleading eyes, begging him to smile for her. "No."

"Come on! Please?" She scooted her chair as close as it could possibly get to him. He didn't mind the closeness, but he did detest the fact that she wasn't going to stop until she got what she wanted. "No."

Hilary pouted, "Please, Kai? I've never ever seen you smile big enough to show them off."

"Neither has anyone else in the world." Ass.

"Please, please, please!" Hilary clasped her hands together and continued to beg. "What's so bad about me seeing?"

"It requires too many muscle movements."

Hilary sweat-dropped, "That isn't even relevant!"

"Yes it is." He munched on a mini sandwich he made with two crackers and a piece of cheese. Hilary folded her arms in frustration. One way or another she was going to see.

The phone began to ring and Kai sprang up to answer it- anything to get away from the nagging.

"Tatibana residence." Hilary watched him listen intently to whoever was on the other line. Kai nodded several times and then held the phone out to her, "It's for you."

Hilary carefully took the phone in her hands and held it to her ear. This was weird; nobody ever called the house line. "H-hello, this is Hilary."

"_Hello Miss, we are calling to let you know that your father is being put through treatment. We received a donation from K-err, an anonymous source and it covered the entire payment. Your mother wanted us to let you know because she is in the procedural room with him and there is no phone service."_

Hilary's eyes weld up with tears. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Y-yes, thank you so much. May I ask who sent the cheque?"

'No.' Kai thought to himself, hoping that the woman on the other line wasn't as stupid as he took her for.

"_I'm sorry, but the donator asked for their identity to be kept in secrecy. I'm sorry."_

Hilary sighed in disappointment; she would love to know who did such a thing and thank them from the bottom of her heart. "That's okay! Umm, would you be able to thank them for me and let them know how much I truly appreciate this?" The tears were building up so fast she was almost choking on her words.

The woman smiled on the other line. _"Of course dear. Take care, now."_

Hilary pulled the phone away from her ear and turned it off. She stared at the floor in a mixture of both shock and pure happiness. She shifted her eyes to Kai's and smiled as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Someone covered for my father's treatment. He's going to be alright."

Kai returned her smile and pulled her into a warm embrace. This was the one thing Hilary was wishing for over the past month. She prayed night after night for there to be some sort of miracle that will help save her father. She wrapped her arms around Kai's chest and hugged him tightly. Tears of joys streamed down her face. "I'm so happy, Kai."

"I know."

They stood holding one another for a few moments until Hilary pulled away and stared up into his eyes. Kai looked down at her in confusion, only imagining what she was going to say next.

"Hey Kai," she said softly.

"Yeah?"

She beamed up at the man in front of her and knew the response she was going to get. "Thank you for everything."

Kai smiled at her words, "Any time."

"Aha!" Hilary pointed her finger at his face with a huge grin on her face. Kai's confusion from before had doubled and he tilted his head slightly. "What?"

"I've received two miracles today." What the hell was she going on about now? Wasn't she supposed to be all emotional and upset and let Kai comfort her in his arms? That's what he thought would play out.

"I saw it." She placed both hands on her hips and stuck out her chest triumphantly. "Wh-" 'Shit.' He fell for her trap. Hilary knew that Kai reacted the same way every time she mentioned how thankful she was to him. Also, whenever she was upset or crying he would smile and try to comfort her with his own way of sweetness.

Hilary replayed Kai's smile in her mind in slow motion. She mentally paused the image where smallest indent in Kai's cheek appeared: the dimple. It was faint and close to the corner of his mouth, but it was still there. "They're adorable, Kai. You should show them off more."

Kai rolled his eyes and walked back into the kitchen to his plate of food.' How embarrassing.'

Hilary tagged along behind him like a puppy. She went on about how Kai should smile more often and flaunt his cute little dimple. It wasn't anything spectacular to him. In all honesty he took it as a sign of inferiority and weakness. What man who is considered ice cold, intimidating and full of mystery wants the world to know he has dolly dimples? Not him.

If Hilary had a tail she would have been wagging it uncontrollably at this point. She was so excited she got to see his smile and really focus in on what he was sharing with her all this time. It was fascinating and this only provoked her to want to know more. "Anything else you want to tell me about yourself?"

"Drop it."

* * *

><p>FIN.<p>

I'm so happy I got to finish this chapter before hell overcame my being. Ahaha, poor Kai the pervert. I tried as hard as I could to make that particular scene as innocent as possible because that's really all it was- innocence. I'm at the point in the story where Kai is finally opening up to her completely and waiting for her to do the same for him (don't take that the wrong way lol).

This was planned out to be a lot longer, but the next big thing had to be in a separate chapter. It just had to. Kai's birthday is coming up- woohoo! I'll most likely skip the next week in the story to the point where his birthday is in a couple of days or something because I still have to hit New Years, Valentine's Day, and so on and so forth.

WELL I hope my readers and reviewers enjoyed this little chapter. And Happy late Easter to everyone! Hope the bunny brought tons of chocolate :3

Cheers,

-radixVIRO


	20. Birthday Part One

Hey all! Wow, talk about major delay in the next chapter. A lot has been going on and I, finally, got a new computer cord, woohoo! Bad news is that the original one I wrote 40 years ago got deleted so I had to write this ALL OVER AGAIN!

I'm posting this little short one because it's been sitting on my laptop forever begging for attention and I feel bad for making the readers wait. Sadface. So here's a shortie!

Oh, I have the worst memory in the world and can't remember how old I made them lol So, as of right now, Hilary is 18 and Kai is going on 19 :) because he's a year older and has a late birthday… yeah, why not :D

Anyway, on with the fic!

Disclaimer: I don't own shiiiiit.

* * *

><p>Chapter 20:<p>

Kai had never been a man of many words. He had the tendency to keep to himself and avoid any unnecessary conversation with a human. Not that he hated the human race or anything; he just had a particular high disliking for a majority of them. He, unfortunately, had to grow up on his own and teach himself the ways of life and what was to be considered right and wrong. He did, however, have his grandfather by his side throughout his life; except he was a power-hungry maniac that got off on controlling his subordinates for evil. Kai was sucked into the ideology of his grandfather's world domination, becoming one of many followers. He later found freedom from the confinement of the abbey and created a new life for himself. His passion for fighting and blading never faded through all his hardships and struggles, which brought him to the World Championships where he was introduced to his "team". Kai eventually allowed his walls to drop one by one and opened up to a small group of idiots he now calls his friends. As enclosed as he is, there was always something about being part of a family that appealed to him – whether it be a biological one or simply made up of close friends which he had. There was never a time that he was ungrateful for those close to him that made an impact on his life. His entire perspective of the world shifted into a broader view and he was genuinely happy. Well, until a certain small girl with chocolate brown hair and soft, ruby eyes entered his life that changed it on a whole new level.

"Kai~" A soft whisper floated through the air. Kai kept his eyes closed, inwardly groaning and wished to the gods above to send something in to sweep the annoyance away. He knew if the small voice realized he was awake there was no way to avoid further pestering.

"Kai!" the voice got louder, causing him to become more irritated. Judging by the lack of light in the room he knew it was still much too early to be awake. He was gently nudged by the shoulder, "Hn."

"Kai, come on, you have to wake up." Why did the world hate him? He grabbed the blanket and pulled it tighter around him and over his face.

"Stop being such a baby, come on you're gonna miss out!"

That got the gears turning in his brain – what was there for him to possibly miss out on? Secondly, why would he care? The gentle nudges become more violent and he felt a small palm press against his cheek, squishing his face into the pillow. "Get up!"

"Ugh, for fuck sakes!" he shot upright, alarming Hilary that was sitting on the lower half of the bed. She grinned witnessing her successful mission of waking the beast. Kai, on the other hand, was not as impressed. He let out a low growl as he watched her smile miraculously grow larger. "What do you want?"

Hilary pointed towards the clock beside the aggravated bluenette, motioning for his eyes to follow.

_11:56PM_

"Are you kidding me!?" Kai huffed and flopped himself backwards in disbelief. The one night he was getting a decent sleep Hilary decided to barge in and actually entertain him.

"It's almost time!" He felt the bed sink in as she crawled up to where he was. She propped her head up on her arm lying beside him, poking at Kai's cheek. "You can't go back to bed just yet."

Every poke received a twitch of his eyebrow. 'Is this girl serious?!' he groaned, finally caving in and turning to face her. She was in mid-poke and accidently _'booped' _his nose. Hilary giggled, "Guess what's in four minutes?"

Hilary was either blind or stupid – Kai clearly was in no mood for guessing games. His expression showed exactly what he was thinking, causing him to receive another poke to the nose. "Can you at least play along?"

"Hilary, it's almost midnight. What the fuck is so important?"

She smiled slyly – she lifted her body up off the bed and started crawling backwards, speaking in a hushed tone, "You'll have to come and see for yourself."

Kai rubbed his forehead and growled loudly in frustration. "Alright!" He flung the covers off and stood to his feet. He knew for a fact that if he didn't follow along… well, he didn't really want to know the consequences. Hilary was already on her feet walking towards him. She grabbed his hand after peeking over at the clock, "Hurry up and come downstairs!" She practically dragged the poor man downstairs and through the halls. Kai had to admit that even though it bugged him to no end, he kind of liked this pushy side of Hilary. Just as they entered the frame between the living room and kitchen she put her hands on his chest causing him to stop. "Close your eyes."

"No worries with that," he replied sleepily with a yawn, "They're already half shut." Satisfied with the little remark he made, he listened and closed his eyes. He felt her small hand slip back into his and guided him into the kitchen. She held onto the sides of his arms as she positioned him on the kitchen tiles and kicked his foot over to align with the other.

"Open." Kai closely opened his eyes only to have his mouth opening with them. The entire kitchen was decorated with multiple tones of blue with a large banner across the center reading _"Happy 19__th__ Birthday Kai!" _Presents were stacked up beside the decorated table, each matching the theme Hilary had set out around the rest of the room.

His jaw hit the floor when he saw a massive cake sitting on it. Kai stepped forwards to admire the work put into the cake; it had three tiers with a combination of navy and baby blue icing on each one. There were white designs on each tier, giving it it's own individuality and uniqueness. At the very top was a hand-crafted model of Dranzer in the center surrounded by flames. Underneath it illustrated, "Happy Birthday, Kai."

He turned his attention back to Hilary, his eyes of clear amazement staring into hers. He gazed up and around at all the decorations surrounding him and the small girl, "You did all this?"

Hilary smiled at the ground, "I know it isn't much, but it was the best I could think of for the time-frame I had to work with." Kai stepped closer to her and lifted her chin up with his finger. "Don't be embarrassed, this is absolutely amazing, Hilary. I'm impressed."

A small blush rose to her cheeks and she looked away from his stare, "D-do you like it?" Kai pulled her into a tight hug, nuzzling his face into the nape of her neck. If he hadn't been trained to hide emotions, he could have cried. The happiness inside him couldn't be explained with words or actions; nobody had ever gone to such lengths for him like this. Lifting himself up from her, Kai closed his eyes and kissed Hilary's forehead. "I love it. Thank you."

Hilary grinned up at him happily knowing he liked the first part of his present. She glanced over at the clock;

_12:00AM._

She pulled him back into another tight hug and looked up into his eyes, "Happy Birthday!"

Kai returned the smile still in awe. He couldn't believe she actually did this for him after all the bullshit he made her deal with each and every day. "Hey, Hilary," he began.

She pulled herself away from him and gave a questioning look. "Yes?"

Kai smirked, "This whole thing just bought you out of a likely well thought out plot of revenge for waking me up."

Hilary rolled her eyes and giggled, "There's nothing you could have done to me, anyways, so it was never a real concern." She closed her eyes and snuffed her nose up to the ceiling. "Besides, you're so predictable." She folded her arms over her chest.

'Smartass.' Kai smiled as he scooped her up into his arms and spun her around once, completely taking her by surprise. Hilary laughed and squirmed around to free herself from his grasped, but it only made Kai fumble around and lose balance. Thankfully he had made it into the living room when they both fell over laughing onto the carpeted floor. He shielded her so she wouldn't get hurt, resulting in her landing on top of him. Hilary lifted herself up with her arms and – still laughing – she pinned Kai's arms down to his sides. "I win," she smirked victoriously.

There was no way in hell Kai would drop a level of his pride to a girl- even if it was Hilary. He somehow managed to grab onto her upper arms and flip her over so he was on top. She still had a big smile on her face while she furrowed her brows up at him. Kai, too, was grinning from ear to ear and playfully growled at her. He lowered his face to hers so their foreheads were touching. "How's that for predictable?" She placed both palms on his naked chest and tried to push him off. Unfortunately for her, Kai was built like a brick wall so there was little to no chance of being able to make him budge.

Hilary's smile faded to a small, more timid one when she realized how close they were. The last time they were this close they almost kissed, and what's worse is they haven't ever spoken of it since. Not that she minded or anything, considering how awkward it would be to bring it up again. She wanted to know if there was anything behind that moment; any allegorical meaning.

"You alright?" Hilary focused herself back to Kai's worried eyes. She smirked and kissed his nose, "I win, again." She scooted herself from under his built frame and sat with her legs crossed. Kai lifted himself from the floor without removing eye contact with Hilary. He scratched the back of his head, "Sorry if I hurt you."

"No, no!" Hilary waved her hands frantically, "You didn't hurt me at all! You just took me by surprise – hey!" She jumped to her feet and ran back into the kitchen, reaching up into the cupboards. "Mind if I give you one of your presents right now?"

Kai quirked an eyebrow and sat on the couch while he waited for the girl. She was in the kitchen fishing around for a few moments until she emerged back into the room flashing her smile once more. "Listen," she started, "I know you're probably sick and tired of music and singing at this point," she smiled softly at the ground and her cheeks turned a light pink, "But since we both entered that contest together, I figured writing was something we had in common, so I wrote something special for you."

She sat back down on the floor diagonally from Kai to distance herself. She didn't want to be in close proximity for him to embarrass her.

"Let's hear it." Hilary's head shot up in surprise from his quick response. "R-really? I didn't plan on singing it, though, I just wanted you to read the wo-"

"Your voice will make it a thousand times better than the one in my head." Kai slouched back against the couch with one arm propped up to support his head, "I'm ready when you are."

This was totally unexpected – she wasn't prepared for this whatsoever. All she wanted him to do was read a silly song she wrote for him, not actually listen to her sing. She never really minded singing in front of him before, she was so comfortable around him – but this… this was different. Hilary had spent the last few weeks writing straight from her heart; it would be too embarrassing if she sang.

"But Kai-"

"Come on, it's my birthday." Kai smiled at Hilary, encouraging her to begin. She hated how he could make her do anything. She exaggerated a sigh, "Alright. Give me a minute to think this through."

Hilary took a few moments of silence to figure out how to prepare some sort of melody in her mind. She wasn't sure how it would sound, but she prayed it won't be as pathetic as she thinks it is.

Hilary started humming. She closed her eyes and took in one last breath;

_Here's a song for the nights I think too much_

_And here's a song when I imagine us together_

Kai smiled and closed his eyes as he listened to Hilary's beautiful voice fill the house. She caught him in her trance once again; he was absolutely mesmerized.

_Here's a song for when we talk too much and I forget my words_

_Heaven can wait up high in the sky_

_It's you and I_

_Heaven can wait deep down in your eyes_

_I'm yours tonight lay your heart next to mine_

_I feel so alive_

_Tell me you want me to stay, forever_

_'Cause heaven can wait_

_Here's a song for the one who stole my heart_

_And ran so far that cupid couldn't catch her_

_Here's a song for the kid who aims so high_

_He shot her down_

_Heaven can wait up high in the sky_

_It's you and I_

_Heaven can wait deep down in your eyes_

_I'm yours tonight_

_Lay your heart next to mine_

_I feel so alive_

_Tell me you want me to stay forever_

_'Cause heaven can wait_

_Here's a song for the nights_

_I drink too much and spill my words_

_Heaven can wait up high in the sky_

_It's you and I_

_Heaven can wait deep down in your eyes_

_I'm yours tonight_

_Lay your heart next to mine_

_I feel so alive_

_Tell me you want me to stay, forever_

'_Cause heaven can wait_

_'Cause heaven can wait_

_'Cause heaven can wait_

Hilary's voice drifted off and silence filled the room. She slowly opened her eyes and met Kai's with her own. She smiled sweetly at him as she always did, waiting for a response.

Nothing.

This worried her, 'Maybe I went a little too far with the words…' "Umm, Kai?"

"I'm sorry," he started, smiling at her uncontrollably, "But I'm speechless."

Hilary giggled nervously, "It was really stupid. I promise you I tried as hard as I could, but that was the best I could come up wit-" Kai lifted her up on the couch beside him and pulled her into another hug.

"Just shut up, Hilary."

Kai didn't want to move from his spot with her for even a second. Mostly because he wasn't sure what he would say afterwards due to the fact that he would scramble up his words like a nervous school boy. He just needed to feel her in his arms at that moment and nothing else. He couldn't describe the emotion he felt while he listened to her words; they flowed through him, paralyzing everything they touched. If she truly meant everything she just said, then right then and there would be the perfect time to tell her everything.

He pulled away from the hug and stared into her eyes softly. He placed a hand on her cheek and smiled as she turned a brighter pink with each passing second. "Hilary," her heart skipped a beat when he said her name. She fidgeted in her spot and couldn't look him straight in the eye. She knew exactly what would happen if she did. She knew things right now were what people called a heated moment and she didn't want to be played or treated like a fool. Of course she wanted to kiss him more than anything, she had been in love with Kai since the first day they met, duh! 'But what if his feelings aren't mutual?'

She felt Kai snake his free arm around her small waist and pull her in closer to his body. She honestly felt like she was going to hit the floor. Dead. The things he did to her were ridiculously mind numbing. She felt his breath on her forehead and he tightened his grip around her small frame. Hilary tensed up. 'Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…' She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for impact. She heard Kai give a small laugh and he kissed her forehead.

Pulling away, he looked into her eyes and smiled. "Don't be so serious."

Hilary stood there like a statue – her face was red and her body stiff. "What?" Kai snickered, "Were you expecting something else?"

That did it. The heat rose from the pit of her stomach to her face (even more so) and she raised her fist at him angrily. "Kai, you bastard! A simple thank you would've sufficed!"

Said "bastard" turned and waved her off, "There's no fun in that. I'm going back to bed," he faced her and smirked evilly, "Feel free to join me."

Smoke blew out Hilary's ears in both embarrassment and frustration. Her mumbling faded in the distance with every step Kai took. He loved getting under her skin just for a reaction. He'd recently realized how childish he was becoming. Not that he took it in a negative light or anything, but it was more of a feel of happiness and he was actually having some fun in his life. Hilary was slowly but surely changing him as a person.

Rather than sleeping in his previous bed, Kai decided to infiltrate Hilary's and take over her bed. It was his birthday, after all. He pulled down the cover and slid under them, making sure he was as close to the wall as possible. The less she could see of him, the better reaction he'll get. Kai smiled to himself, knowing this was going to be the most important birthday of his life.

"I can't stand that guy!" Hilary's voice echoed throughout the house as she slowly approached her room. "Since when did he become such an immature jerk?!" Her curses continued while kicking off her slippers and lifting the blanket. Hilary climbed into her bed with a huff. "Can't imagine what he'll do ne-"

Her words ceased when her ruby eyes met a pair of glowing violet ones. Kai smirked, knowing what was coming next.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! KAI, YOU IDIOT!"

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><p>So, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, SOOOO sorry this was such a shitty little chapter after such a long wait :( can't believe it took an entire year for an update… dang. I've been a huge slacker with school, so I'll use the slack-time to come up with another chapter! This was intended to be longer, but, as stated in the beginning, I NEEDED to post this as a big sorry for everyone that is still interested.<p>

Sorry, again! Love you all *kisses

Cheers,

radixVIRO


	21. Birthday Part Two

I'm baaaaaaaack! Holy hell that was a long gap between chapters lol I'm pretty sure this is the same time I posted one last year… I'm so embarrassed and sorry! I kept getting messages and you guys really inspired me to get my ass in gear and finish this up already! There will be about 5 more chapters left to this little story, so it's gonna start to get interesting. Heh heh heh. I really have missed this and getting feedback from everyone. Please forgive me and enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my imagination.

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><p>Chapter 21: Birthday Part Two<p>

"Kai!" Silence.

"Kai, come on!" More silence.

Kai could feel someone pushing on his shoulder, but decided to leave it. It had been a long day of training and putting up with Hilary's nonsense – he didn't want anything else more to deal with for the day.

"KAI!"

This time, there was a flash of light and his eyes shot open. His eyes took their time trying to focus. Pushing himself up onto his elbow, he looked around trying to find a familiar face.

'What the hell?'

He seemed to have fallen asleep on the floor at Hilary's place. Standing up, Kai brushed himself off and walked towards the kitchen. No one.

"Kai, you're finally awake!" He quickly turned his head to the direction of a soft, quirky voice he recognized. Nothing. 'Where the hell is she?'

"Hilary?" he called out, hoping for a response. He walked around the entire house trying to find his little companion, but she was nowhere to be found.

"I don't think he knows…" his ears twitched when he heard the sound of a bastard. Yes, it was Hajime's voice. 'Even the way he speaks is bastardly.' Kai smirked at his personal joke, following the hateful voice to the backyard. "Is it okay to tell him-"

"NO!" Kai stopped as he reached the tall, glass sliding door. 'Hilary?'

"He can't know this, please! I'll do anything!" Kai stood in silence watching Hajime pull Hilary into a hug. This was the first time he ever saw someone act so touchy-feely with her.

Needless to say he hated it.

"You can't, he might try to kill me. Just give it time and maybe he will come to understand it."

Kai gritted his teeth and swung the door open- they vanished. He was standing outside alright, but it wasn't Hilary's house anymore. 'What the actual fuck is going on?!' He stormed out of the door, stomping on damp grass with his bare feet. He was fed up. Frustrated. And, above all, pissed off. What gave Hajime the right to touch _his _Hilary? Nothing. And now Kai is on a rampage.

"Kai."

"WHAT-" he spun around to the voice once more and his jaw suddenly lost its ability to close. A woman stood before him with long, flowing blonde hair and her violet eyes pierced through him. Her baby blue gown was torn, singed and dirty, as if she had escaped a raging fire.

"Leave her. She'll come to terms with this."

'W-what?' He tried to get the words jumbled up in his head to come out of his mouth, but – for the first time in a long time – he had nothing to say.

"You're trying your best and she appreciates you. Please, she needs you and your support. Be strong."

Kai took a step forward. Before he could take another one, the woman was joined by a small child – a little boy. The small child looked about 2 years old. His pudgy hand reached up to hold the woman's, not losing sight of Kai. Kai tried to get a better look at the boy's face: it was round and perfectly symmetrical. His soft, watery violet eyes stared Kai down and his rosy cheeks lit up when the woman bent down to pull him into her arms.

Standing up, she extended her hand out to Kai. "I may not be there for you," she looked at the child, then back at Kai, "but you will be connected as one, my son."

Kai's eyed widened and he lunged for the woman's hand. "Mom!"

BANG!

Hilary dropped her hair brush and came close to jumping out of her skin. She rushed downstairs and to the living room. "What happened?!"

She rounded the couch and saw Kai lying on the floor with his eyes wide open, gasping for air. She hurried to his side, bending down and feeling his forehead. 'He's burning up…' "Kai!"

She started to shake him to get his attention, but he continued to stare into the distance. "Kai! Please!"

She waved her hand in front of his eyes. No response. Hilary frantically ran to the phone and called Tyson's dojo.

"Hey Hilary, what's u-"

"You have to come here quickly! Please!" She yelled into the phone at Max.

"What's wron-"

"It's Kai! He won't snap out of it I don't know what to do. Please come here as soon as you can!"

"Hila-" the line cut out.

Max ran out the side of the dojo and to the pond where the guys were preparing Kai's present. "Guys we need to go to Hilary's now! Something's wrong with Kai!"

Ray stood to his feet, worried. "What do you mean, what's going on?"

"I have no idea," he shook his head, "Hil just called and didn't give me time to ask anything."

The boys exchanged worried looks to one another and bolted down to Hilary's house.

"Do- do you think he's alright?" Tyson panted, picking up speed and running in front of the group.

"I honestly wish I knew."

All at once they barged into Hilary's front door and stared at the sight in front of them.

Kai was lying on his side facing away from them. Hilary was kneeling over him shaking him and yelling his name.

"K-Ka-" Hilary turned to the boys standing in the door frame. Tears were falling down her flushed cheeks. "H-help me," she hiccupped. Tyson was the first to drop to her side.

"Kai, man, wake up!" Silence. "What are you doing, get up!" He shook Kai's still body – only to receive the same response Hilary did. Nothing.

Ray ran to the opposite side of Kai, waving his hand in his face like Hilary had. "Hilary what's going on? What's wrong with him?!"

Hilary's body began to tremble, "I-I have no idea. I was upstairs and I heard a loud noise." Tears were now pouring out of her eyes, "W-when I got down here he was like this and hasn't moved."

Tyson looked back at Max who was holding Hilary, rubbing her back as she sobbed into his chest. "Call the hospital!"

Before anyone could react, Kai shot up, reaching out in front of him and panting. The room silenced. Tyson back up and looked up at Ray, who had jumped to his feet from the surprise. Max loosened his grip on Hilary when she lifted her head from his chest to stare intently at Kai.

She watched him bring his hand closer to his eyes as if searching deeply into his palm for something. She slowly pushed away from Max and crawled over to him. "K-Kai?"

He turned his attention over to Hilary. His eyes widened in horror when he saw her tear stained face. His shaky hand rose to cup her face, but she backed away.

"Wha-at happened?" Hilary hugged her hands into her chest. "Are you back?"

Kai's eyes softened sadly and he sighed. "Hilary, I didn't go anywhere."

Her face scrunched up and threw herself at him. He caught himself before the sudden weight threw him off balance and held onto her tightly. She sobbed and wrapped her arms around him, her tears seeping into his shirt. Kai pulled her into a tight embrace so she could nuzzle herself into his neck. "I'm sorry."

"KAI!" His eyes snapped open. Above him were two bright ruby eyes looking questioningly down at him. "Are you listening?!" Hilary's face disappeared from him. In one swift movement Kai got up and grabbed her from behind. She wiggled in his grasp, trying to free herself. The party hat she was still wearing slid down over her eyes, frustrating her more.

"Ow! Kai, what's wrong with yo-"

"Please stay." She stopped struggling and pulled the hat off of her face, looking up at him. "Kai?"

He lowered his head and pushed his face into her hair. "Just don't." Hilary stood for a moment before she turned herself in his arms to face him. She lifted her hands and placed them on either side of his head, her eyes full of curiosity and confusion. "Kai?" she whispered. She lowered her hands on his face so they cupped his cheeks and lifted him up. Her expression and eyes spoke for her – in her hands was a Kai she had never seen before. His eyes were full of tears.

She pulled his head gently into her chest and held him close. "Kai, what happened?" He didn't raise his head; instead, he shook his head and buried his face deeper into her neck.

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

"Hilary? Kai?" The tip of Tyson's hat peeked in through the front window. "Answer the damn door; we're freezing our balls off!"

_Knock, knock, knock._

Tyson let out a sigh, watching the cold air catch it and carry it away. "There's still no answer."

Ray hopped around trying to peek into the small window beside the door. "I can't see any lights on."

"Well what are we supposed to do now?" Max struggled trying to balance the tower of presents in his arms.

_Creak. _

"Just open the door." Minori pushed the door open with his foot and proceeded.

Tyson rolled his eyes mumbling to himself, "Show off…"

"Do you think this is really okay?" Ray spoke quietly and cautiously, prepared for any potential hell Kai may unleash on them.

"Pfft, he's with Hilary," Max snorted, "I doubt he'll try to kill u-" The guys following behind bumped into Max.

"Ah, what the hell? Why did you stop?!"

Max spun around, his innocent face turning red and marched out of the living room.

His team's eyes followed him out the door, at each other, and at the sight in front of them. Tyson's cheeks flushed pink. "O-oh my god!" he whispered to Ray.

Kai was sprawled out on the couch with his strong arms wrapped tightly around Hilary who was - in an unusually sexy position - lying on top of him with her legs entangled with his and sleeping on his chest.

_FLASH!_

Hilary's eyes shut tight because of the sudden burst of light and nuzzled her face into Kai's chest.

"What the hell!" Tyson turned and quietly yelled at Ray, "You're gonna get us killed, man!"

"I couldn't resist," he snickered in response. "You really think I would let a chance like this pass?"

Kai groaned and repositioned himself, careful, though, not to let go of the girl in his arms.

The team froze in horror and looked back at their captain.

"Phewf" they collectively sighed. "Well, now what?"

Ray shrugged his shoulders. "Dunno, Ty. I guess we should leave them alone."

"Yeah!" Max piped in from the kitchen, "This is a better present from us, anyway."

Minori placed the stack of presents Max dropped on the table. "C'mon, Hilary's rage is equally as terrifying as your leader there."

Tyson shuddered. "Yeah, you don't have to tell me twice."

The team snuck back out of the house after their short, yet somewhat awarding, visit. Minori snagged the bottom of the door with his foot, closing it behind him. He glanced back at his childhood friend and her obvious companion, letting out a small smile before shutting the door.

Kai's head raised and looked over at the door, only allowing his left eye to open slightly before lying himself back down onto the arm rest.

He smirked. "You should learn to lock the door."

Hilary let out a small giggle, lifting herself up to look directly at him. "You were the last one in, so it's your own fault." Kai pushed her head back down onto his chest and twirled her soft locks between his fingers. "I feel kind of bad." She continued. "They wanted to spend this special day here with you." She felt him shrug under her.

"That's fine. They know I'll see them later, anyways. Besides," he closed his eyes and leaned against her head. "I prefer this over anything else." Hilary smiled to herself, pressing herself harder against his body. "Yeah, me, too."

An hour or so had gone by and Kai still found himself staring at the ceiling. This was the moment he waited years for and those idiots disrupted it yet again. 'Big surprise.' Kai sighed to himself. He loved him teammates, he really did. But sometimes they just needed to go. He glanced down at Hilary who was sleeping soundly. He smiled, 'At least she's able to finally rest.' Her body lifted and dropped with every breath he took; her weight felt like nothing to him. It was amazing how feisty and intimidating she can be sometimes after seeing her like this.

He pulled one arm and rested it at the nape of his neck. 'That dream… what could it have meant.' Last he remembered, he hadn't dreamt of his mother since he was younger. It was strange that she would show up now of all times. He figured it could have been his mind playing tricks on him since it's his birthday and all. "Feh. Impossible." If that was the case, she wouldn't have shown up looking like she was pulled out of a fighting cage full of lions. But there was that little boy…

His eyes narrowed. 'What significance did that child have? It wasn't me; my hair isn't that light. He didn't seem too happy, though..' he decided to drop that thought rather than work himself up about it. Hajime then entered his mind.

Kai gritted his teeth. 'That slimy bastard. It's bad enough he has contact with Hilary, but now he has the nerve to show up in my dreams. Fuck him.'

Something about that guy, asides from the obvious, grinded his gears. Sure there were people Kai hated for no reason – that's just the way he is. Sure, he hates him because he claims that Hilary belongs to him. But there was something else Kai couldn't seem to put his finger on. 'He's so possessive, but it never seems to be a relational kind of love he's expressing.'

Kai groaned and rolled his eyes. 'Now I'm thinking about this guy's love life.' Whatever the case, that guy was screwed up in ways Kai couldn't define yet himself. Then there was the brother. 'He seems nice enough; he respects Hilary, so I respect that.' But Minori, too, had something else about him that Kai couldn't figure out. There was something they seemed to be hiding and refusing to share with everyone else.

_Ring ring!_

Kai snapped out of his thought process. 'Ugh. Now what?'

_Ring ring!_

Hilary's phone was going off. Hesitating, he lightly shook her shoulder. "Hilary, your phone's ringing."

"Mh." An irritated groan emerged from her throat and she turned her head the other way. 'Of course.'

Kai extended his previously relaxed arm down to the floor and fiddled around until he found the phone. He brought it up to his face for closer examination. 'Unknown caller, huh?'

"Hi."

"… _Who is this?"_

Kai pulled the phone from his hear and gave it a death glare, as if trying to scare the person on the other line. Who did they think they were talking to the great Hiwatari like that? He pulled the phone back.

"Who the hell are you."

"_You're not Hilary." _Kai rolled his eyes, 'No shit.' _"Give her the phone."_

"No." The voice on the other line got unexpectedly aggressive and irritated.

"_Give her the fucking phone. You don't know who you're dealing with." _Now they've done it.

"Listen you stupid fuck," Kai properly addressed this mystery person, "I don't know or give two shits to know who you are, but you're not speaking to Hilary if you're already talking to me like that."

_Beep._

Kai tossed the phone to the other end of the couch, careful not to break it. 'Stupid prank callers.'

He repositioned himself back to his comfy-spot and closed his eyes. He had enough of the world for one day and was ready to shut it all out for a few more hours.

_Ring ring._

"Ugh. Really?" He carefully leaned forward to reach for the phone, using his other hand to hold Hilary's head so it remained nestled in his chest. Lying back down he looked at the phone. 'Unknown Bastard again-'

"Listen you-"

"_You need to learn some respect, young man, or your life with burn down around you."_

"Shut up-"

"_This is your last chance. Give Hilary the phone or else." _Oh hell no. This person did not just cut him off _and _threaten Hilary. He gritted his teeth – seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

"I'm not abiding by your rules. Stop calling her you're not talking to her."

The mystery caller snickered. _"Not the wisest choice, Kai Hiwatari." _With that, the line went dead.

This time, before even considering chucking the phone against the wall, Kai shut it off and threw it back onto the floor. 'Stupid fucking people; leave me alone.'

Before he got a chance to close his eyes, a strange smell filled the air. He took a few sniffs and opened his eyes. 'Gas?' Suddenly, a large rock came flying through the window above the couch and the glass shattered to pieces. "W-what's-AH"

Kai instinctively pulled Hilary close to his body and blocked her with his own. He looked up to see what happened. 'What the hell?' He looked down at Hilary who was still half asleep. "What happened?" Almost instantly, two larger ones were thrown in after the first and smashed into the television set.

He picked her up and jumped out of the way. "Kai, what's happening?!" She clung to his neck, a bit shaken. "I don't know, but we have to get out of here."

He charged towards the front door only to find someone standing there holding a gas can and a lighter. The figure was wearing a deep hooded sweater so Kai couldn't make out the face. They lifted their head smiling cynically, "'Til death do you part!"

They tossed the lighter into the air.

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><p>AND CLIFFHANGER!<p>

I really wanted to continue on after this, but this was a pretty solid place to stop. Hopefully it made up for the lack of updating and communication I've had with everyone lately! I refuse to look through it before I post it – the day has been waaaaaay too long already lol so bear with me. The other chapter is currently in progress and I'm hoping to have it up by the end of the week.. if not, a year ;) definitely kidding that's not even funny I'm so sorry! But yeah, at LEAST by next week if not this one! Hope everyone has a fantastic Halloween :D

Cheers,

radixVIRO


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